One Sister Away
by Emziie
Summary: Joey has a crush on Kaiba, but Kaiba acts like he hates him at school. What will Joey do when Kaiba shows up at his family's door for dinner as Serenity's boyfriend?  Yaoi
1. One Sister Away

It was a warm day in May, the sky was a brilliant blue and big, fluffy clouds were scattered randomly over its surface. It was a Wednesday and the students of Domino High were walking to their first class of the day. Yugi Mouto, Tea Gardener, Tristan Taylor, and Joey Wheeler walked towards the main building, headed for their homeroom class. The four were friends- good friends, and they chattered together and laughed together as they always did. There were, however, a few less interested students. Seto Kaiba, for one, walked briskly towards the building carrying a very expensive briefcase. He wore the school uniform, but didn't bother to button his jacket, revealing a tight black turtle-neck underneath. As his passed the group of friends, he didn't acknowledge them. That was, until Joey got shoved in Kaiba's direction by Tristan as he teased him about his crush on Seto.

The two collided, Joeys back to Kaiba's side. The collision was not hard, but Seto was not happy as his briefcase fell onto the concrete and the leather scuffed and tore a bit on its edges. Joey, less luckily, found himself on the ground.

"Watch it, mutt, do you not see me walking here?" Kaiba growled, his blue eyes narrowed and his shoulders tensed.

"Sorry, Kaiba, I didn't mean nothin'…" Joey said looking back at Kaiba; his cheeks were flushed with embarrassment of the accident. He hadn't talked to Seto in real life in months, just in his dreams and fantasies. Joey found himself looking over the CEO, noting his black slacks and black turtleneck stretched over perfectly toned muscles. He found himself looking at Kaibas face, his unblemished white skin and electric blue eyes. Joey couldn't help but blush as he imagined himself touching that wonderful face, and Kaiba's perfectly styled hair and messing it roughly.

"Whatever, dog. You can't do shit right. Get up and go to class." Kaiba said, he bent over and picked up his briefcase and continued on to class. Joey sat on the ground for a minute, stunned, or rather, love struck.

"C'mon man, I'm sorry." Tristan said, he was Joey's best friend and he offered his hand to his blonde buddy. Joey took the offer and got up, he dusted himself off and noticed that the others had left, and infact, there was suddenly no one around.

"Dude are we late?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, man, you sat there staring off into no where for like fifteen minutes." Tristan said, "I thought you'd gone catatonic or something." Tristan laughed. He looked at Joey and noticed that his best friend seemed less enthusiastic and more in his head now, unusual for the blonde. The two walked together, silently, to their class with their friends.

"Wheeler, Taylor, nice of you to join us." Their teacher, Mrs. Nakamura said pointedly. Her glassed sitting right at the end of her pointy nose. "Take your seats boys; you are awfully tardy though, tsk." She mumbled to herself, Nakamura was always one of the stranger teachers, but the gang almost always found themselves involved with her somehow. Joey and Tristan went to their assigned seats, as far away from each other as Nakamura could get them. It was an idea of Nakamura's to surround Joey by quiet and dedicated students to get him to focus better; one was of course Seto Kaiba. And though they never talked to each other, Joey loved every second he could watch Seto from the seat behind him. He loved the way Seto would shake his knee during exams, or the way he stretched after every class. He even grew to love the way Seto put so much effort into ignoring him. However, today Joey would not be so lucky.

"Had to cry about it before you came to class?" Seto growled under his breath as Joey walked by. Joey rolled his eyes and sat down, he gently kicked Seto's desk leg a few times, enough to bother the CEO. "Knock it off, Wheeler." Kaiba said without even a glance back. Joey continued, testing his luck. His logic told him that if Seto was talking to him, it was a step in the right direction. "Mutt, do you want me to make you stop?" Kaiba said in a threatening tone.

"You can try." Joey replied softly, continuing his busy work annoying Seto.

"Mikako I cannot concentrate sitting in front of this idiot. I need to move seats." Seto suddenly said loudly in the middle of the lecture. His teacher stopped and looked at him, a wrinkle etched over her nose, showing her obvious annoyance of his rude comment and the use of her first name.

"Mr. Kaiba you need to be nicer to your peers. You cannot change seats, there is none open right now." She said simply and turned back to the board.

"I can't concentrate with such a big-headed asshole sitting in front of me." Joey said, equally as loud as Seto, mocking him in a whiney voice.

"Mr. Wheeler, language!" Nakamura said sharply. "If you two have a problem, you can go sit in the hall and work out your differences." She said, narrowing her eyes behind her glasses. "As in leave my classroom, now." She emphasized the 'now' by pointing to the door. Both boys, confused by the sudden trouble, got out of their seats and walked to the hall. Kids in their class 'ooooh'ed at them as they left. Seto walked out into the hall first and turned around to look at Joey as he closed the classroom door. Joey sighed and walked to the closest bank of lockers, he sat down and leaned against them, closing his eyes and rolling back his head.

"Wheeler, we were sent here to do something and I want to meet the objective." Seto said in his professional voice, Joey swallowed hard. He couldn't bring himself to look at Kaiba, he was alone with him and it was an intoxicating thought. He imagined himself pushing Kaiba against the lockers and kissing him senseless. Running his hands under Kaiba's school jacket and feeling the hot muscles under his fingertips, going lower and feeling the one thing he wanted most. He took a deep breath shakily. This wasn't going well.

"Well, Seto, what are our differences?" Joey said calmly, still keeping his eyes closed and imagining dead puppies and grandma's in underwear, trying desperately to keep himself under control.

"For one, I'm a duel monsters protégé and a rich genius CEO, while you are a terrible student and a poor peasant of the modern age." Kaiba said. Joey heard him rustle around a bit, so he opened his eyes. He wish he hadn't.

Kaiba sat across from him, his knee's bent and his jacket removed. Joey studied the fabric covering Kaiba's arms; it was tight enough that Joey noticed the ripples of working muscles and the lock of brown hair that fell on his face, partly covering his left eye. For the first time, Kaiba looked a little more unkempt and a little more human. And much more sexy.

"Yeah." Joey said blankly, his mind was elsewhere.

"Well then, mutt, I'm leaving. See you tonight." Kaiba said, got up and put his jacket on and briskly walked away.

"But it's only first period…" Joey said, staring at where Seto had just been.

_See you tonight? What did that rat bastard mean? For being so smart, he's such a weird guy…. _Joey thought, he sighed as the bell rang. _How long were we out here?_ He thought to himself, Yugi, Tea, and Tristan were the first out of the classroom; Tristan walked in front of Joey and kneeled down,

"Have a nice time?" Tristan asked with a big cheeky grin on his face, Tea and Yugi sighed when Joey gave Tristan a grimace instead of a smile.

"That dude is weird." Joey said, still in his spacey state. He nodded his head a few times, as if he were agreeing with himself mentally.

"C'mon man, let's get to second period." Tristan said and for the second time that day, offered him a hand. The two boys walked together with Yugi and Tea close behind. Joey and Tristan teased each other, shoved each other, and almost jumped on each other before they reached their next class, laughing the whole way.

"Those two sure are good friend, huh, Yugi?" Tea asked, smiling at the two and nudging Yugi on the shoulder.

"Hah, yeah. I'd say they like each other if I didn't know how much Joey likes Kaiba." Yugi said thoughtfully, "Come to think of it, who does Tristan like?"

The door unlocked and swung open, Joey trudged in his dark house and tossed his heavy backpack towards the shoe carpet. He took his shoes off and walked into the kitchen, the house wasn't particularly big or fancy, it had a great sense of family and an eternal smell of good cooking. The kitchen was large and inviting with an island to eat off of that separated the living room and the kitchen. The cabinets were all oak-like and the floor was a material made to look and feel like wood- though it was not. He opened the fridge and grabbed a soda, he walked into the living room and flopped down onto the large couch, he looked for the remote, which sat lonely on the coffee table.

_Mom decided to clean up…_ Joey thought, noticing that the usual magazines that were spread messily over the table and the old cups were gone. _This place doesn't even look lived in anymore_ Joey rolled his eyes, he wondered why his mother even bothered. He reached for the remote, finally noticing a small post-it stuck to the front, he raised am eyebrow and peeled the small yellow paper from his controller, it read;

Hi Honey! Thought I'd get you here. Got the house cleaned, we have a guest tonight. I'll be home by 4 to start cooking, Luv, Mom

Joey rolled his eyes at the note, she didn't even clean the house, someone else did. He flipped on the TV and found a duel monsters tournament. He watched for an hour before the front door opened and his sister, now able to see, walked in.

"Joey?" She called from the other room.

"In here, sis." He said without bothering to look up. The first duelist was just on the brink of losing before he was able to summon Red Eyes Zombie Dragon, and the other competitor's Celtic Guardian didn't stand a chance. "Yeah!" Joey yelled at the screen as the Dragon blasted away the warrior and the life points went to 0.

"So you know we're having company tonight?" Serenity inquired, leaning her forearms on the back of couch over her brother and looking down at him.

"Yes. Mom left me a note; she'll be home at four." Joey said, looking back at his sister. He was proud he'd helped her get her vision back because she really was a beautiful girl, her sparkling brown eyes and chestnut hair, lean frame and long legs. Joey vowed long ago never to let any boy touch his baby sister. Serenity smiled and kissed her brother on the head.

"So you'll be very well behaved no matter what?" She asked as innocently as a baby sister can, "And you'll wear something presentable?" She asked again.

"Sure…" Joey mumbled as he watched the introductions of the next duelists come up. "Wait, who is it?" Joey asked suddenly, but by the time he did Serenity was gone and up stairs, he could hear the shower start to run. He shrugged, _Who cares whose coming? It can't be that bad. _Joey figured.

Two and a half hours later- 6:20

The wondrous smell of Mrs. Wheelers cooking had enticed Joey to over around the kitchen, drooling at the Italian meal his mother had created. The smell of garlic break wafted to the house and the blonde boy pleaded with his mother,

"Mooooom! Let me have some! I'm STARVING." Joey asked, giving his best puppy-dog look.

"No Joseph. Wait until our guest gets here. He should be here any minute. Why don't you set the table and help me move this food to the dining room?" Mrs. Wheeler asked he son, and as a mother, it was more a demand than a question.

"Fine..." Joey sighed, he would wait. He set the table, making it all look perfect. He put the food in its respective place and asked his mother if there was anything else he could do to pass the time.

"Go change, honey, put on a clean shirt." She replied, noting her son's stained shirt from the food he'd eaten earlier in the day, this was not unusual for Joey.

"Fine." Joey pouted and walked upstairs. He walked into his small room, it was bigger than Serenity's but not by much considering the queen-sized bed he insisted on cramming into it. The walls were painted a soft blue, he had a window facing the compact back yard and there were duel-monsters posters covering the walls almost completely. His deck was locked tightly in a safe box, though it wasn't as valuable as some, he liked to treat it as such. Joey pulled off his shirt and flung it into the corner where he flung dirty clothes, and opened his drawers to find a clean one. He chose a basic green shirt, forest green with no design. _This should make those chicks happy._ He thought referring to his mother and sister._ I bet dad didn't have to change shirts… _Joey grumbled inwardly. He walked into the upstairs hall just as his father was walking out of the master bedroom, adjusting his tie.

"Hey dad," Joey said softly, he and his father were not on the closest terms.

"Son." Was all the man said and he walked down stairs. Joey went into the restroom, the counter that was clean just minutes before was covered in makeup and other girly crap. Joey shoved it all the side and splashed his face. _This is so weird. Are they trying to hide this from me? What kind of guest are they avoiding telling me about? _He shook his head, _I'm just imagining things! Crazy, Joey, crazy! I'll walk downstairs and it will be no one special… _Joey left the restroom and walked down the stairs which lead, conveniently, to the front door just as the bell rang.

Joey jumped at the opportunity to open the door, however when he did his eyes opened wide and his heart skipped a beat…. Or 5.

It was Seto, wearing black jeans, a stark white shirt, a black leather jacket (Though not too flashy, of course) and, shockingly, carrying a bouquet of blue irises and pink tulips.

"Mutt." Was all he said.


	2. Surprise, Joey!

Chapter Two- Surprise, Joey!

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! I appreciate them! So, I didn't write anything about the story on the last chapter so I thought I'd fill ya'll in. I wrote this story earlier this year (It's written through chapter 10, I gotta write the very end but it's basically done.) and published it on AFF because it is an adult fic. It has a lemon in chapter 10, so that will not be included on this site. There is some lime-scented things coming up. This was the first adult fic I ever wrote- and my first attempt at writing fanfic's in YEARS. So I hope you enjoy it. Here's chapter two. Oh, and ignore any funky formatting or random letters... Formatting and me dont do well.

* * *

"Mutt." Seto had said. Joey felt his left eye twitch. He didn't open the door fully.

"What the hell are you doing here, Moneybags?" Joey asked him, narrowing his eyes; he had yet to make the connection.

"Joseph! Language!" His mother barked, ripping the door from his fingers that were suddenly cold as ice. "You must be Seto Kaiba; it's nice to meet you." She said with a smile. Joey really couldn't see why she was smiling.

"Seto! It's so nice to see you." Serenity said, walking into the foyer. Joey felt nausea building in his stomach, _What the hell is Serenity talking about? How does she know this jerk?. _Serenity smiled at Seto as he handed her the flowers, she leaned forward to hug him with her open arm and Joey just about snapped.

"I see what's going on here!" Joey barked. "Sere….ni….ty…." Joey said slowly as the group ignored him completely and left for the dining room. Joey closed the front door and sulked, _What the hell? My sister and Seto? Could I have any worse luck?_. He huffed and walked into the dining room, _Times like these, I need good food_. Joey ended up sitting next to his mother, across from Seto. The group chatted politely, Serenity and Seto sat together, Joey became suspicious anytime the two shifted closer together. He would 'accidently' kick Seto every time they got too close. Joey was confused and completely torn… Was he suppose to be jealous his sister got Seto or angry Seto is near his baby sister?

"My company is aiming to release a new virtual reality version of duel monsters." Seto said, looking to Joey's father.

"That's very interesting. Did you design the software?" Mr. Wheeler asked, being a computer man himself.

"Of course. I've been updating it for years, trying to get the perfect program. I run into trouble with sound and feel. We've gotten close to smell even, we want the game to be as if you were really there and the monsters were real." Seto continued, picking at his food every once in awhile but not really eating much.

"Oh, Seto, tell them about your deck, my dad knows some about duel monsters." Serenity said, clearly gushing over him.

"Well, you know I'm the only person who has all 3 Blue Eyes White Dragons," Seto said with a smug look, "They combine to be Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon, one of the most powerful monsters in the game." Seto finished, he did love to gloat over his deck.

"And yet, you lost to Yugi." Joey said, as if pretending to finish Kaiba's sentence. "Always gonna be number two to Yug." Joey said, sucking his lips and making a noise, thinking to himself, _That should piss the bastard off. _

"I do not intend to stay in second place. I will challenge Yugi again soon, and then I will be the real king of games." Seto said, giving Joey a harsh look, "It's not like you stood a chance against me." Joey felt a prickling up his back, he felt himself becoming agitated.

"Joey, stop being rude to our guest." Mrs. Wheeler said, stepping on Joey's foot.

"Ouch mom…" Joey whined. Joey decided to remain quiet, he was however preferring being mad at Seto than noticing how enticing the other boy was. Joey was sure now, Seto was not gay, and therefore he didn't stand even the smallest chance with him. Joey felt the pit of his stomach tighten, he felt sick. _Why do I let that stupid, spoiled bastard get to me?_

As the dinner started to wind down, the unbelievably boring conversation, at least to Joey, started to pick up again. Joey perked up immediately upon his mother mentioning Seto and Serenity's 'relationship'.

"So are you two considered a couple?" His mother asked smiling from ear to ear. Serenity grabbed Seto's hand and smiled back,

"Yes, we are." She replied cheerfully, looking up at her boyfriend. He looked distracted, watching Joey glower at his sister and mother. She stroked his hand softly, trying to get his attention even as he continued to ignore her, Seto finally mumbled an agreement and looked down at his expensive Rolex.

"We better get going, the film starts in a half and hour and I bet there will be long lines to get drinks." Seto said, getting up from the table. Serenity got up too, Joey just noticed she was completely dolled up, her face smeared with colors and her clothes a little too risqué for his approval. He glared, biting his bottom lip with anger.

"I'm going to Tristan's." Joey said suddenly, storming out of the dining room and out the front door. The others didn't even note his leaving.

* * *

"Tristan? Dude! I'm coming over." Pause. "Yes, NOW. I need to spend the night." Joey said into his cell phone. "Ok. I'll be there in like ten minutes." Pause. "Nah, dude, I'm walking." Pause, mumble, "It's fine! I don't mind walking!" Joey said and sighed, pause, "Ok. I'll wait here." Joey sighed, Tristan always insisted on coming and getting him in his car, it's not like walking was difficult.

_Bastard…. Bastard…. Fucking Bastard. _Joey thought, he was fuming at this point. He sat on the curb, Tristan would be there any moment to take him to his house. _Anyone but… Serenity. God, it's like she didn't even care that she was falling all over him. Then again he didn't look too interested… What if he's using her? My baby sister? That BASTARD. I will kill him with my own bare hands and rip- Tristan! _

A dark blue care pulled up in front of Joey, he got up and brushed himself off, opened the door, and got in the car.

"Hey, man." Joey said, Tristan looked tired, exhausted really.

"Hey. Why you gonna spend the night again? What's the rush?" Tristan asked, concentrating on the road. There was just a little light left, the sun was down but its rays left a bit of warmth in the air.

"You'll never believe me if I tell you." Joey sighs, Tristan is quiet. Joey glances at him, the brunette looked expectant, "Ok, I will anyways." Joey sighs, he's been doing that a lot lately. "Serenity… Is…. Dating a guy." Joey starts, Tristan cuts him off.

"You want to beat him up? Like the good ole' days?" Tristan asked with a grin, still watching the road though they approached his house.

"What good ole' days? We never beat anyone up." Joey chuckled, "So weird, man. Anyways, it's not just any guy. In fact, I wish it was any guy _except_ that one." Joey said as Tristan parked the car. Joey curled his upper body down, looking somewhat defeated.

"Just tell me." Tristan said, raising an eyebrow.

"Se-to. Kai-ba." Joey said slowly and deliberately. It just set in and Joey felt a sudden rush of emotions… All bad. Every last one.

"Oh man… Dude, that fucking sucks." Tristan said, Joey barely noted the cussing that Tristan rarely did.

"Yeah man. He was at our house for dinner. Dude, are your parents here?" Joey asked, noticing Tristan's blue Malibu was the only one in driveway.

"Nah, man, they're gone for this week. Business." Tristan said quietly. "It's just you and me, boss." He said with a grin, getting out of his car and shutting the door. Joey did the same, only much slower and much less coordinated, almost falling out of the car while exiting.

"Fuck. Let's go somewhere or something. Invite the others! Let's have a party or something." Joey said, looking at Tristan, the brunette didn't look impressed and, infact, looked quite hesitant.

"We can invite the others but… no party. My parents will kill me. No booze either." Tristan said to Joey, knowing what was on the blondes mind.

"Fine, just you and me… with some booze." Joey grinned at Tristan, he sighed.

"'kay." Tristan gave in, he was fairly weak around Joey, the other boy was like an instinct for him, undeniable and insatiable.

* * *

Two hours and 8 beers later, the inexperienced teenage boys were both losing their judgment, quickly.

"Duuuuuuddddeeeee. That was sooo trippy." Joey said, they were watching duel monsters together, watching the explosions and magical creatures come to life on Kaiba's technological creations.

"Yeah, man, sweet." Tristan slurred a bit, he'd never had more than a beer before and 4 were hitting him harder than one would think.

"Dude, we're fucking lightweights." Joey joked, sprawled out on Tristan's couch. Joey and Tristan were both on opposite ends of the couch. "I'm tired man, let's sleep." Joey finished, he yawned and tried to get up, the task seemingly more difficult for him than Tristan. The boys walked back to Tristan's room, though half way down the main hall Joey trips on his own feet and lands on Tristan. The two boys hit the hard-wood floor with a 'thump', and they both start to laugh.

"Man, you're a fucking klutz." Tristan slurred, grabbed his best friend and pulling him closer so he could see him.

"Yeah…. Ooops…." Joey said and tried to get up, Tristan grabbed his arm and prevented that from happening. "Wha—" Joey says before Tristan pulls him down, he takes Joey's face gently in both hands and brings him closer, Tristan had lost his fear suddenly, and he brushed his lips against Joey's, so lightly Joey wasn't too sure it happened, but Tristan was.

"Choose me." He whispered.

* * *

Chapter Two end

Review please 3 I love you all.


	3. Hands Off, KaibaBoy!

Chapter Three- Hand Off, Kaiba-Boy!

A/N: Here you go. Chapter Three.

* * *

_Ouch… my head…_ Joey thought at he woke up. He stretched and yawned, he was in Tristan's room on the other boys small couch, Joey had slept fairly curled up all night and his body popped and cracked when he stood. Joey hadn't bothered to think about the night before, everything kind of blurred together, but he remembered he had fun. However, when a memory of his best friend kissing him, or, er, almost kissing him came to mind his face immediately went white, _Shit! I better get outta here… What the hell..._

"You up already, Joey?" Tristan asked groggily from his bed, still mostly covered and eyes still shut.

"Y-yeah." Joey said awkwardly, _Fuck… what do I say? Maybe if I say nothing he won't bring it up… Maybe if I act like I can't remember, he won't bring it up... That's the plan then! _Joey thought, nodding to himself. He looked over at Tristan, the other boy was still dressed, jeans and all, in his bed with only about half of himself covered. "So I better get going! Busy, busy Saturday!" Joey said and walked out, giving Tristan the biggest grin he could muster on his way out, pulling on his jacket at the same time. Joey walked out of the front door and noticed that it was starting to drizzle a bit, a bit typical for May.

_Shit… Walking home in the rain, I guess. _Joey sighed and began walking out of Tristan's neighborhood. He was thankful they lived so close to each other, less than a mile and about a 15 minute walk. The rain started to pick up a bit as Joey started walking on the main road. Little did he know it was still only around 7:30 in the morning, and therefore the town was yet to really wake up. A few joggers were out, only the most dedicated, and a few bikers as well, but few cars. Joey felt chilled as his hair collected the moisture. He grumbled about walking home, and about the rain, but not seriously complaining. Joey, though he felt more comfortable with people around to talk to, always enjoyed a few minutes to himself to think things over. His mind automatically went to Seto, and he felt himself blush. He thought about Seto's body, and his voice. His husky, deep voice that gave Joey chills. He couldn't stand the intoxicating scent of cologne and boy that always clung to Seto delicately whenever Joey got within a few feet of him.

Unfortunately, this mental conversation had brought up the fact that Seto was 'officially' Serenity's boyfriend. The blush that was on him face disappeared, thinking about the two kissing, hugging… And, God forbid, anything else. He felt his stomach tighten with insecurity. _Serenity… Anyone but my baby sister… _he sighed hopelessly. _Seto, that bastard. This can't be real. My life really is a fucking drama._ He complained mentally.

Speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear.

A black Mercedes pulled up next to Joey, one of the darkly tinted front windows rolled down and the deep, scratchy voice of Seto Kaiba came from inside the car.

"Mutt, you need a ride?" He asked, making a point to ask as rudely as possible, almost barking at the other boy. Joey almost gagged, taking help from such a bastard. But it was another 10 minutes to walk and he wasn't feeling his best after the previous night…

"You going anywhere near my house?" Joey asked, he really was cold and almost shivering as the temperature was barely touching 50 degrees (F).

"Sure whatever." Seto replied coolly, unlocking the doors. Joey stepped off the curb and opened the luxurious cars' door. He felt guilty for sitting on the leather seats while his pants and jacket were damp from the rain. Joey glanced at his cell phone for the time, suddenly realizing exactly how ungodly early it was for a Saturday.

"Thanks. What are you doing this early in the morning?" Joey asked politely, trying to make conversation. He felt his body reacting to the close proximity to Seto, he got goose bumps, not from the cold, and he felt like he was filled with butterflies. He blushed harder, suddenly feeling the constrictiveness of his pants. He looked at Seto quickly, almost a glance, and noticed he was driving with one hand on the steering wheel, the other ready to shift, he was wearing a black suit jacket and a light blue shirt under it… Enough to make Joey weak in the knees. The car rolled to a stop at a red light, and Seto decided to reply to Joey question.

"I'm working this morning and this afternoon I'm taking Serenity to the zoo." He said simply then added, "You know, if you weren't her brother, I wouldn't let a wet dog like you in my precious." Seto finished, referring to his car. Though Joey knew he was just trying to be confrontational, his heart sank just a little.

"And if I didn't have the most bizarre night of my life and wake up and walk home in the fucking rain I wouldn't have gotten into your precious either." Joey said harshly in a mocking tone, trying to inflict just a little hurt to Seto's ego, if nothing else.

"Bizarre?" Seto asked, raising an eyebrow, Joey looked at him, his sexy blue eyes were on the road, though they were almost to his house.

"Yeah. Have fun playing with the animals. And keep your nasty hands off of Serenity." Joey made a sour face as he said the word 'nasty' and opened the door.

"I'm sure Serenity will be fine with my nasty hands **ALL** over her." Seto said with just a little too much enthusiasm. Joey sucked in a gulp of air and huffed at the audacity of Seto Kaiba.

"Hey, fuck you." Joey said sarcastically and slammed Seto's precious door. He stormed off and opened his house door, noting that he didn't hear Seto drive away. "I wish, fuck.." He said to himself. Joey walked in the house and shut the door before spinning around at lightening speed to look out the window by the door. Seto was still there, but within seconds the car started up and the black car left.

Joey sighed. He walked into the living room, sitting down on his place on the couch and sighed, again mentally chatting with himself.

_ANYONE but him… Why do I have to like Kaiba? He's such an ass and apparently a pervert…_ Joey thought, and then had a moment of silence. A voice, not his own, in the back of his mind whispered, 'Tristan, you idiot!' and Joey widened his eyes. _What if Tristie (A/N Nickname) does like me? Shit… Well, that's anyone but Seto Kaiba. But how could I like…. Him…? We're best friends, we've been best friends for years! He's like a brother…_ Joey thought, sighing deeply. He was already feeling angst over this whole relationship thing, and was feeling his headache set in again. He got up and walked into the kitchen, getting himself some water and an aspirin. He swallowed the pain killer, realizing that coffee sounded absolutely delectable right then…. And a shower, or at least a change of clothes.

* * *

Two Hours Later (9:45)

Joey sat on the couch, he spent a few hours going from couch to kitchen, eating enough breakfast for his whole family and more, and watching cartoons like a 10 year old would. The family came and went behind him, each greeting him with a good morning but then moving on. It was right when Joey was convinced that Jerry the mouse was finally foiled and destined to be eaten by Tom that his phone rang loudly, Tristan's name on the caller ID. Joey answered it reluctantly, feeling awkward around his friend.

"H-hello?" Joey said, trying to sound as lazy and relaxed as normal, ending up making himself yawn in the process.

"Hey Joey! It's Tristan." The phone said.

"What's up?" Joey asked, dreading that Tristan would want to 'talk'.

"Nothing, wanna hang out today? Maybe with the gang?" Tristan asked.

"Sure." Joey paused, and got a genius idea, "I know what we should do today! Let's go to the ZOO!" Joey said excitedly, "With everyone... Don't forget Bakura! Hell, invite Duke Devlin too!" Joey said, glad he'd worked things out with the dice-bearing boy and glad he didn't forget their most quiet friend Bakura.

"Ok.. If you want to. What time? You need a ride?" Tristan asked again, polite as always.

"Dude, I always need a ride." Joey said, realizing quickly that could be taken the very wrong way and quickly continued, "I don't know what time. Lemme go figure some shit out and I'll call you back in like 10." Joey said and hung up, jumping from the couch and dashing upstairs. He heard soft music coming from Serenity's room, so he knocked a few times until he heard her mumble something like 'come in'.

"Hey, sis." Joey said, walking over to his sister. She was on her bed, her pink and purple bed, with a book in her hand and a few binders strewn about. He sat down in an empty spot and laid back. "You know, mom and dad got a hell of a nice mattress for you." He sighed closing his eyes, her bed was so soft and comfortable. He felt a tickling on his side and realized his sister was the culprit, "Hey!" He squealed, jumping up quickly and looking at his sister who was giggling madly.

"Oh, Joey, you just can't have it all." She said with a chuckle. "What did you need?" She asked, her eyes large and questioning, like a doe.

"I heard you were going on a date today…" Joey started, thinking about his drive with Seto.

"Oh yeah? From who?" Serenity asked, a suspicious grin on her face.

"From Moneyb—I mean, Kaiba." He said, catching himself while calling Kaiba, 'Moneybags'… A suitable name considering the gorgeous car he drove earlier.

"You talked to Seto?" She asked, surprised.

"Yeah… He kinda gave me a ride home from Tristan's this morning at like 7:30." Joey replied awkwardly. "He was on his way to work."

"He dropped you off while he was going to work?" Serenity asked, "We live so far away from where he works though..." Serenity said, looking at her bedspread in thought, Joey started to think and realized Kaiba must have seen him from an intersection away and decided to continue, out of his way, to give him a ride. He felt almost touched until his sister began again, "I'm so worried about how much he works. I try and tell him the stress is bad for his health but he never listens… So stubborn. Just like you. Stupid boys." She said, smiling and joking. Only Joey wasn't laughing.

"You worry about him?" Joey asks, looking like a hurt puppy.

"Of course, he's my boyfriend." Serenity said in a matter-of-fact voice. It has still yet to set in for Joey, he sighed and looked at his sister, remembering what he came up to ask.

"So where you going on your hot date?" Joey said, trying to be cute and loveable, so his sister would not get suspicious.

"We're going to the zoo." Serenity replied, she hadn't an idea of Joey's plan.

"Oh, when?" Joey asked, looking nonchalantly out the window, he noticed it was still raining a bit. "It's kinda rainy isn't it…" Joey noted softly, not meaning to say that out loud.

"It's supposed to clear up by 3, which is when Seto is going to pick me up." Serenity said to her brother, poking him in the side. "What are you up to today, big brother?" She asked Joey.

"I think that me and the gang are, now, going to the zoo." He said and gave his sister a small grin, sarcastically watching her face change from content to miffed to horrified. "See ya!" Joey ran out of his sister's room and to his own. He picked up his cell phone, pressing the number '2' and send, Tristan's number was on his speed dial. The phone rang a few times and then the other boy picked up.

"So what's the plan?" Tristan asked from the end of the line.

"Pick me up at 2:30, tell the gang to be at the zoo at 3:15." Joey finished, thinking about the time it would take to get there and when Seto and Serenity would be. He smiled at his brilliant plan. "Tristan, you're awesome." Joey finished.

"I know, right? I'll be there. Let's call the others… You call Yug' and Tea and I'll call Devlin and Bakura." Tristan said cheerfully, he was glad Joey wasn't acting awkward at all… Just a little strange with his sudden urge to go to the zoo.

"Mmkay. See ya then." And Joey hung up, getting straight to calling his friends.

* * *

The weather did, miraculously, clear up right around 2 o'clock. Joey was getting dressed, for the first time in his life he was feeling stressed about what to wear.

_Dammit! Why do I look like shit in all my clothes… _He huffed, looking at himself in his jeans, a black shirt with Red-Eyes Black Dragon on the front, and a light leather jacket. iI look like some kinda Hells Angel in this./i. He took off his clothes, neatly putting them away and standing in the middle of his room in his boxers, looking at the mirror. _Pfft, no wonder Kaiba doesn't like me. He's such a God… I wish I was going on that date, not Serenity.._ He thought to himself, thinking about Kaiba. Unfortunately for Joey, his mind wandered to the way Seto looked sitting in the school hall with him, his jacket off and his hair slightly messy. He thought about the tight shirt Seto wore, stretching across Kaiba's firm pecks and his biceps covered but not hidden by the shirt. Joey glanced down, noticing the raging hard-on he'd just created with his dirty thoughts.

_Shit!_He thought, Joey immediately ran over to his door and, thank god he convinced his mom for a lock, locked it. _If I take care of this NOW then I won't be so distracted from my brotherly duties later when I have to see Seto… _Joey reasoned with himself. His mind was fuzzy with lust, he walked over to his bed slowly and sat on it, climbing on his mattress until he could lean against the wall his bed rested against. He sighed, _Finally, some little Joey time. _He chuckled at his own bad joke.

Joey reached into his plaid boxers, hissing quickly when he grabbed his length. He bit his lip, trying to be quiet because his sister was down the hall. He pushed his boxers down, just enough to free his erection. Joey closed his eyes, imagining him and Seto doing this together.

He imagined Seto breathing on his neck, whispering to him almost too quietly to hear, and kissing his shoulder at the same time, Seto would travel down his chest to his right nipple, licking it lovingly and nipping lightly, Joey ran his hand over his cock quicker now, pumping it with enthusiasm.

Seto would look at him, his blue eyes filled with pure lust and Joey would reach for Seto's hair, messing it up and laughing. He imagined Seto smiling at him, and leaning in for a deep kiss. Joey would wrap his arms around his neck, pulling himself tightly to the older boy above him, Seto would grind his hips onto Joey and Joey could feel the hardness through his jeans.

Joey could feel himself getting close, he played with the head of his erection for a moment before continuing his rhythmic pumping, his abdominal muscles tightened and spazumed just a bit and Joey let out a small whimper.

"Joey!" Knock, knock, knock. "Come out for a sec!" Doorknob jiggle, knock. Joey felt his body go over the edge, he bit his lip hard as he could as he felt the immense pleasure from his orgasm. His eyes were glazed over and he was breathing hard. He looked at his hand and grimaced as it was covered in his own semen.

"Joey? Are you ok?" Serenity asked from the door, and Joey snapped out of his haze.

"I'm fine sis. What's up?" Joey asked through pants, trying not to sound like he just jerked off fantasizing about her boyfriend.

"I just wanted to tell you that you better not embarrass me at the zoo." She said and walked away. Joey glared at the door, his eyes narrow.

_She knocks at my door at the worst time to tell me not to embarrass her? Why I oughta…_ Joey shook his head, his jaw locked. He grabbed a Kleenex, cleaning himself and his hand and threw it away. He glanced at the clock that read 2:20.

"Damn I better hurry." He said, throwing on a plain black shirt and black jeans, he pulled on his shoes and walked down stairs. He found a white jacket of his, lined with black stitching that would match his shirt, _I'm turning into such a fairy._ And walked into the kitchen to see his sister.

"You look good, Joey. Sure you aren't trying to impress anyone?" Serenity asked him, emphasizing 'impress' with a raise of her voice.

"Whatever, sis. You're the one wearing a skanky skirt and a shirt so low I think your boobs might fall out." He snapped at her, feeling suddenly defensive and oddly bitter.

"Joey, don't be a jerk. Seto loves this outfit and I, like you, want to impress him." Serenity said, Joey widened his eyes, _SHIT! Does she know? _He thought frantically.

"I don't wanna impress Kaiba! I don't even like boys. That's so fucking gross, Serenity. Your boyfriend isn't that hot. Infact, he isn't hot at all." Joey said loudly and quickly.

"That's… Not what I meant? Jeez, Joey, why are you being such a freak?" She asked, him her brows furrowed. Joey phone rang and it was Tristan calling, he answered his phone.

"Yo." Joey said

"I'm outside man, come out." Tristan said boredly and hung up.

"Gotta go sis. See ya at the zoo! Hands to yourself." Joey scolded and jogged out the kitchen and then out the front door to Tristan's car.

"Lookin' sharp, my man." Tristan grinned at Joey, Joey felt suddenly self-conscious with his best friend complimenting him, he mumbled a quick 'thank you' as they drove away.

"So… Tristie… I have a secret to tell you about the zoo today." Joey said, smiling at his friend who was driving. Tristan glanced at him with a questioning look, Joey decided not to continue until his friend asked about it.

"Well?" Tristan said impatiently.

"Weeeell, I kinda wanted to go to the zoo today because Serenity and Kaiba will be there…" Joey said, trying to look innocent. Tristan was quiet, Joey didn't exactly know why though.

"Oh…Kay." Tristan said, nodding slowly. Joey gave him a big smile, trying to lighten the mood. He thought Tristan would have been more interested at least. After all, Joey was starting to believe the kiss thing was all a bad dream.

"You should see the skanky outfit Serenity is wearing. I swear to God that girl is just whoring herself to Kaiba because he's a shallow jerk who's into that." Joey said, soundly catty and jealous. "And Kaiba is probably looking at her, drooling over MY baby sister! Can you believe it?" He continued, barely noticing the contrast in his statements.

Tristan chuckled.

"So you're dressed all schnazzy for Kaiba?"

* * *

Chapter Three End.

Chapter Four: To Africa We Go

A/N: My chapter titles are so fucking creative.

Thanks for the reviews guys 3. I really appreciate it. Oh, and I know Joey lives with his dad... This story, is, however, currently dwelling in my head and therefore this is the new reality in which I would like to portray. Joey, therefore, lives with both his parents. Love it or leave it friends :)

I love you all. Keep reviewing! Tell me what you think!


	4. To Africa We Go

Chapter Four- To Africa We Go

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys... And for those who were wondering, I made Joey a little bit more passive because, in my experiance, when I really like someone I don't like pisssing them off. That is just the way I see it.. Thanks for taking the time to review to everyone who did, I really appreciate it!

This chapter is a little boring, my apologies.

* * *

"So you're dressed all schnazzy for Kaiba?" Tristan asked, smiling at his best friend. They pulled into the zoo parking lot, they found a spot but it was a bit of a walk from the entrance gate. Kids of all ages, small and large alike, were running about screaming and laughing with each other. Thankfully Joey never minded kids, infact he enjoyed them and their innocence. Days all older people wish they could get back, if for only one day. Joey checked his phone for the time, the white numbers read '3:16' and he nodded to himself. Seto and Serenity shouldn't be here for another 20 minutes at least, which was both good and bad for his current situation.

"Damn. Long line." Joey said, him and Tristan were at the end of a line that was exceptionally long, the two sighed as the line was very slow moving. The zoo on a nice Saturday, who woulda guessed it'd be busy (A/N: I lived about 20 minutes from the Oregon Zoo growing up so zoo's have a special place in my fanfics apparently xD)?

"Tristan! Joey!" A young voice yelled from behind the two, Joey turned around and waved at Yugi who was jogging up to them, Tea, Duke, and Bakura close behind. "Hey, do you think the kids will mind if we cut in the line with you?" Yugi asked, looking up at his much taller friends.

"Nah." Joey said. "You guys all made it. I'm shocked." Joey joked, the group hadn't been together like this in awhile.

"Joey why did you want to come to the zoo today?" Tea asked, Joey had told her it was hid idea on the phone.

"Serenity is dating Kaiba and I wanted to keep an eye on her." Joey stated simply, looking away from his friends to hide the obvious white lie. The group, minus Duke, all knew he liked Kaiba and Joey really wasn't fooling anyone. "They left the house at 3ish." He finished.

"Serenity is dating Kaiba?" The group all said at once, all looking very confused at Joey.

"I know, right? He just showed up at my door last night with flowers and the whole schabang and is, apparently, Serenity's boyfriend." Joey said, curling his nose in a disgusted manner, as if he'd just smelled something gross. He shook his head, "It fuckin' sucks…" Joey sighed, he felt two hands on his shoulders and looked up to see Tea looking at him in the eye, ready to start on a friendship speech.

"Joey I know this is hard for you but—"

"Tea please. It's fine. Let's just make sure that rich bastard keeps his paws off of my baby sister." Joey finished.

"Paws? I'm pretty sure you're the one with the paws, Mutt." Came a dark and husky voice from behind the group. Everyone but Joey and Tea (Who was too determined to cheer Joey up than notice her surroundings) had noticed Seto and Serenity's arrival.

"Brother, funny seeing you here." Serenity said to her brother sarcastically, then switching her attention to Tea, "Tea! I've missed you. We don't hang out enough." Serenity said, hugging her friend. By this time the line had started to move and the group was quickly approaching the gate.

"Damn. Serenity grew up. I'm loving that top…" Duke said quietly to Tristan, nudging the other boy with his elbow and grinning. Tristan grinned back, and chuckled, trying not to blow his cover.

"Seto's pretty lucky, huh?" Tristan said, though his mind was less on Serenity and more on Joey, who had a hopeless crush on Seto.

Joey hadn't said anything after Kaiba insulted him, he instead glowered by himself, scowling and pouting as Yugi and Bakura tried to enagage him in their conversation.

"So I heard your grandpa got a new shipment of duel monsters booster packs?" Bakura asked Yugi, the two standing on either side of Joey.

"Yeah… Gramps said some of them contain some brand new magic cards." Yugi said, "C'mon Joey, lighten up. This way Seto won't touch Serenity." Yugi said, giving Seto the biggest smile he could, Joey was a sucker for his little friend.

"I'm sorry Yugi. You know." Joey sighed, walking up and paying for his admission to the zoo. Once the others entered, the group stopped and chatted for a bit about their plan.

"Seto, I really want to go with our friends, I think it'd be a lot of fun that way… I never get to spend wnought ime with Tea… Please...?" Serenity asked her boyfriend, who had his arms crossed and was glaring at the surrounding children.

"OUR friends?" Joey interjected, a dry look on his face.

"Joey…. Ugh!" Serenity glared, she was pouting.

"Sure. We can go with your friends. We're going to dinner after this anyways, after that then we'll have our fun." Seto said, purposefully looking at Joey as he finished his sentence, and then smirking. Joey felt his blood beginning to simmer.

"Kaiba you sick—" Joey started, but off by Tristan.

"Let's all be friends now, guys, c'mon! I wanna go to Africa." Tristan soothed the situation. Tea and Serenity locked arms, walking together. Joey and Tristan walked in the front of the group, Tristan trying desperately to keep Joey away from Kaiba who walked next to his girlfriend. Bakura and Duke were slightly lost, but happily chatted together as they'd been school friends for some time.

"Zebra~!" Serenity and Tea squeled together, running over to the fence where two zebras looked at them, sighed, and continued eating their hay. Joey walked over to the fence and looked at the African animals.

"I think they might have some wild dogs, if you'd like to be around your own kind." Kaiba said, suddenly appearing next to Joey. Joey looked up at Kaiba, the other boy just taller by an inch or two.

"Shut up, Moneybags, I don't feel like talking." Joey sighed, his memories from earlier in the day when he had… fantasized about Seto was still fresh in his mind. He could just barely smell Seto's distinct scent, the one that was to obvious in the car that morning. Joey kept his eyes strictly trained on the zebras.

"You never thanked me for the ride this morning." Seto said. iDoes this guy really want me to thank him now?/i. Joey glanced at Kaiba, his eyes narrowed.

"I'll thank you when you do something nice out of the vast kindness in your heart." Joey said sarcastically, he knew it sounded awkward but he wasn't able to react as quickly, after looking over Seto and almost drooling.

"Alright then." The brunette smirked, Joey couldn't take his eyes off Seto. "You got something to say mutt?" Seto said, almost, ALMOST, smiling at Joey.

iWhat the hell is he talking about… Do I have anything to say to him… anything… I can't tell him he's the hottest thing since the sun and I want to rip off his clothes and have my dirty way with him here./i

"Nope. Nothing to say here." Joey said, dragging himself away one step at a time. Seto didn't move, he watching the equine's wander lazily around the pasture and didn't move from his spot.

"Dude, is he bothering you?" Tristan whispered to Joey, who was looking a big distraught and confused.

"No. He's too sexy. He smells too good. God, Tristan, what the hell is wrong with me?" Joey asked, looking at his best friend. Joey had his hurt-puppy look on, Tristan blushed as Joey looked up at him, though they were the same height Joey was slouching a bit.

"There's nothing wrong with you man, let's go find some alegators or something." Tristan said, casually throwing an arm around Joey shoulders and walking off.

Neither boys noticed Seto eyeing them suspiciously, standing quietly by himself just within earshot.

hr

"I'm tired! That was fun though, Joey, good idea!" Yugi said as the group of teens headed towards the parking lot.

"Yes, Joey, lovely idea." Bakura said with a smile.

"Hey, Tea, you doing anything later tonight?" Duke asked Tea.

"Yes, Duke, I'm busy." She said coldly, almost snarling at him.

"We'll do it again sometime." Joey said, "Gimme a hug, sis." He said, walking over to his sister with his arms dramatically extended. Once they were in an embrace he whispered in her ear, "Don't do anything you wouldn't do if I were watching. Because you never know when I am." He said, backing away, Serenity raised an eyebrow and chuckled at her brother who was giving her his best threatening look, widening an eye and then narrowing it repeatedly.

"I know, big brother." Serenity laughed, she looked at Kaiba who was, again, looking at Joey with an amused look in his blue eyes. "Let's go, Seto." She said, grabbing his hand. The couple walked away, and the group disperced.

hr

"Joey?" Tristan asked during the drive home.

"Hmm?" Joey responded, feeling tired and staring out the window.

"Are you gonna be ok man?" Tristan said, trying to keep it casual. He didn't want to freak Joey out and go all mushy on him.

"I'm fine." Joey said shortly, Tristan read that correctly as 'I don't wanna talk about it' and so he left it as it is.

The rest of the drive home was silent, except the occasional yawn from Joey. The two friends were comfortable enough around each other, but there was still just a bit of awkwardness between the two. Tristan pulled up in front of Joey's house and let him out.

"Bye." Joey said quickly and jumped out the car, closing the car door and jogging up to his house, waving twice and entering. His mothers car was in the driveway but his fathers was gone. iSaturday. Mommy and daddy date night. /i Joey mocked mentally. "Serenity too." He said aloud to himself.

iWell, I have the house to myself… Should I just sleep? Nah… I wanna wait up for Serenity because I know Dad won't bother to intimidate Kaiba the dream son-in-law. /i Joey went into the kitchen and grabbed himself a sandwich, and then went up to his room and onto his computer. He logged into his instant messenger, "I haven't been on here in forever…" He said to himself, waiting for the computer to load.

Once the computer had finished 'thinking' he saw that Tea was on, but no one else. The next moment a chat room opened with Tea's screen name on it.

'Hey joey!' Friendly342 said, it was from Tea.

'hey tea. Sup?' Joey typed, he was feeling a little odd about talking to her, he was still confused and unhappy about the way Kaiba had talked to him.

'Not much… I had so much fun today. Are you ok tho? You seemed kinda downnn." She typed, adding extra letters here and there for emphasis. He sighed, Tea was always too observant about bad moods.

'I was. I don't like Serenity with Kaiba. It's just bad news and I know it.' Joey typed back, realizing early on that he was going to have to argue with Tea to get her to drop it and he just didn't have the energy now.

'Are you mad because Serenity has a boyfriend or because that boyfriend is SK?' Tea typed back, Joey assumed 'SK' stood for 'Seto Kaiba'. He shook his head, she knew he liked Seto, but he'd never talked to her about it.

'Both.' Joey replied simply, 'He's such a dick sometimes… I don't want him to hurt Serenity.' He finished, and he honestly didn't. He loved his sister and would kick Kaiba's ass if he ever hurt her.

'You sure you don't just want him all to yourself?' Tea asked. iShe's getting a little pushy here…/i

'I'd like that too, but, it's never gonna happen.' Joey sighed, this was the truth… At least to him.

'…I'm not suppose to say anything, but I wouldn't be so sure…' Tea typed quickly, the reply almost instant.

iWhat does she mean?/i

'What do you mean?' Joey asked, honestly curious. There were a few barriers to Kaiba, one being he was not gay, two being he hated Joey and ignored him as much as possible, and three being he was dating Joey's sister.

'Serenity says Seto has been really distant lately and isn't interested in her like he used to be.'

'That bastard!' Was Joey first response to anyone being not interested in his sister.

'I dunno, Joey, think about it.' Tea typed. 'I gotta go anyways… Lot's of homework! Bye!'

'Bye.'

'Friendly342 logged off'

"Well, that was interesting…" Joey said to himself. He looked at the time on the computer, and the time does fly. The clock read '8:04', it'd been about an hour since he got home and he felt tired. Joey went and changed out of his jeans into sweatpants, he looked at himself in the mirror and noticed he looked really tired and pale. _I worry too much. It's been a rough week._ he told himself, knowing it was all mostly that day.

He walked down the stairs and past the kitchen into the living room where he found his spot on the couch to, again, watch duel monsters on TV. However, about 20 minutes into the first match, the front door opened and Serenity walked in.

"I'm home!" She yelled, closing the front door and walking into the kitchen to say hello to her brother.

"You're home early?" Joey said, looking confused.

"Seto wasn't feeling well so we ate quickly and left. I think he's just overworked. It may have been an excuse to get back to the office." Serenity thought aloud.

"Whatever. I'm glad you're home." Joey said with a smile, genuinely happy to see his sister even as he felt bittersweet towards Kaiba.

"What're we watching?" Serenity asked, sitting down next to Joey.

"Duel Monsters. Some European stuff, I'm not really sure what's going on… exactly." Joey admitted with a sloppy grin.

"Sweet." Serenity said, kicking off her shoes, "I'll get those later. I'm so worn out." She said casually. Joey smiled at his sister and the two chatted and bickered as siblings often do.

The rest of the night was uneventful.

Sunday, too, was uneventful. Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler got home around 1 after going dancing, and both of their children were asleep. By 9am, Joey and Serenity were awake and eating a breakfast of cereal and orange juice, talking together as they had the night before.

The day passed quickly, Joey decided to do homework for the first time in a long time, feeling suddenly more adult and more responsible, something that came occasionally and wore off immediately upon making 'That's what she said!' jokes with Tristan.

Sunday was a relaxing day for the Wheelers, but there was a whole week to come and Joey was nervous about his first class, English with Nakamura, where he sat behind Seto.

He should have been nervous, indeed.

* * *

Chapter Four END

Chapter Five- Peculiar Situations


	5. Peculiar Situations

Chapter 5- Peculiar Situations

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys, they are mucho appreicated. Warning: There is a shard of Tea bashing in the chapter.

* * *

_I hate Monday mornings… _Joey sighed. He walked with his bag slung onto his right shoulder; he heard some footsteps next to him and looked up to see Tristan.

"Sup?" Joey asked his friend, Tristan looked tired, but he was still smiling.

"Mondays man… Sucks." Tristan said with a yawn, the two boys joined up with Yugi and Tea once they reached the school campus. Yugi was looking less like himself and more like Yami. Joey looked at him for a few seconds, narrowing his eyes.

"Yami?" Joey asked, suspicious.

"Yes?" The unusually deep voice asked, Joey grinned.

"Long time no see." Joey said with a wide grin, taking the pharaoh in an over zealous hug. "What're ya doing outta the puzzle?" He finished, releasing his friend.

"Yugi was tired and wanted a break from school so I told him I'd take over for a bit." Yami said, he was almost smiling.

"I wish I had a crazy spirit from 5000 years ago so I could skip school…" Joey sighed. Tea very standing very close to Yami, obviously ogling him. _Tea, you're retarded if you haven't figured out Yami only loves Yugi because he's his other half. Stupid._ Joey thought, he hated girls hanging all over his friends, even his ancient ones.

"Let's go guys." Tristan said and the group started walking. Kaiba briskly walked past the group at his regular time, he was in their building much before the friends.

Tea, Yami, Tristan, and Joey entered the school at the same time, they walked through the emptying halls—they were a little late for class and were walking quickly, joking to each other about being late all the time. They turned the last corner before their classroom and Joey immediately saw Seto standing against the bank of lockers he'd been sitting against the previous Friday.

"I need to talk to you mutt." Kaiba said, looking sideways and not directly at anyone.

_What the… hell?_ Joey thought. Joey saw Tristan looking at him out of the corner of his eye, the other boy looked worried.

"What do you want, Kaiba?" Tea asked, pouting and sticking out her lower lip in disgust.

"Did I not just specify what I wanted?" Kaiba asked sharply, giving the girl a half-assed glare.

"It's ok guys. Get to class. I'll be there in a sec." Joey reassured his friends. His stomach was doing flips, but he smiled at them anyway with a toothy grin.

"Ok, see ya." Tristan said. They started to walk away, Yami looked at Kaiba for a few more seconds before moving, the ancient soul was very good at observing things and his observations were going wild at Kaiba's expression.

"Well?" Joey asked once the others were gone. He was nervous, but, Kaiba didn't need to know that.

Kaiba walked over to Joey, looking him dead in the eye. The taller brunette stopped 3 feet from Joey, his look was determined but otherwise unreadable.

"K-kaiba?" Joey asked, cursing himself for stuttering. Kaiba took another step forward, Joey took one back. Kaiba took another forward, Joey took another back. Kaiba took another forward, and Joey found himself pressed against a bank of lockers. Kaiba was only about a foot from him.

_What's wrong with this picture?_ Joey joked to himself privately. He gulped, looking into Seto's blue eyes which looked like they were trying to scream at him. Joey studied Seto's face, he didn't know how long they'd been standing there. It could have been 10 seconds or an hour, he honestly couldn't say. Seto looked almost flustered.. Almost. Joey could smell Kaiba's sweet scent, and almost feel the warmth of the other boy. Joey felt his cheeks heat up- _I must look ridiculous._

Seto picked up his left arm and blocked Joey's best, and only, escape route, which he began thinking about.

_What if he's gonna kick my ass? Shit. I don't have a knife on me or anything.._ Joey was beginning to feel panicked, as much as he loved staring dreamily into Seto's eyes, it was completely out of character for the CEO.

"Seto? W-what did you want?" Joey asked again, barely making out the words. Kaiba's intense stare didn't waver.

"Mutt—" Kaiba started.

The classroom door opened and Yami stepped out, Kaiba pulled his hand away from the locker in which it rested on, as quickly and violently as if it'd been burned. Yami narrowed his violet eyes, he had a feeling he knew what was going on better than both Seto and Joey.

"You've been out here for 10 minutes. Your friends are worried, Joey." Yami said, his deep voice so drastically different from his younger soul mate. Seto glared at Yami, he turned around and stormed off into the classroom that Yami had come out of. "Are you alright, Joey?" Yami asked, walking over to the taller teen and putting a hand on his slouched shoulder. Joey didn't look up, his chest felt heavy all of a sudden.

"I think I'm gonna go home, man. I don't feel good all of a sudden." Joey finished, _What the fuck just happened? That was so fucking weird. _

"Shall I tell the others?" Yami asked, an eyebrow raised. Unlike the others, he knew when not to question.

"Yeah, thanks, tell Tristan to tell Serenity too." He finished. Joey looked at Yami, his eyes were certainly that of an old pharaoh. Yami smiled and nodded, he then walked back to class.

Joey walked home and promptly took a nap.

* * *

Joey was warm, and there were hands stroking his back. He woke up and looked up to see Kaiba with him. Kaiba smiled, the kind of smile that some would say could never come from such a stoic and cold hearted boy. Joey smiled back. Kaiba leaned into him, breathing warmly on Joey's face before gently, almost...

**KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!**

"Joey? Can I come in?" Serenity's voice was outside his door. Joey groggily looked at the clock, '3:16' it read, Serenity was home a bit early.

"Y—eargh…" Joey grumbled, turning on his light, desperately trying to pull himself away from his dreams. The door opened and the light from the hall flooded Joey's room, brightening it a bit more than the small lamp next to his bed did.

"Are you alright, brother? Tristan was quiet all day after you left…" Serenity said, her eyes were wide and worried. She sat on his bed, looking at her brother.

"I'm fine. Must have caught a cold or something." Joey said to reassure his sister.

"Did Seto do anything to you?" Serenity asked, now knowing about the weird encounter the two had earlier that day. _Shit. What did that bastard tell her?_

"Why, what did he tell you?" Joey barked suddenly, feeling defensive and oddly… betrayed that Seto would talk to her about these things.

"He didn't tell me anything. He left after first period, saying he had work to do…" Serenity eyed him suspiciously.

Joey sighed. _Why am I getting so jumpy? What do I care if Seto told Serenity about this morning?... But why am I relieved he didn't? Am I becoming some fucking teenage drama queen who thought that this morning meant something? He didn't kiss me… I could have swore he wanted to. I'm probably just losing it._ Joey felt his cheeks heat up.

"Oh. Weird." Joey said and looked at his sister. She looked a bit tired, probably from worrying.

"Why don't you stay in bed, Joey? I'll bring you dinner in a few hours." Serenity smiled and got up from Joey's bed. "I think you and Seto are a lot alike, actually. Thick-headed and honest." Serenity smiled, the kind of smile that caused wrinkles at the corners of Serenity's eyes.

"Thanks, sis." Joey rolled his eyes as his sister left, Joey was once again in darkness to think and sleep.

* * *

Tuesday

"Mr. Wheeler, can you repeat what I said was due for the homework?" The tall, lanky math teacher asked Joey who was lazily staring out the window.

"Uhh.. No?" Joey said honestly, making the class chuckle.

"Listen next time, Mr. Wheeler, if you don't want to fail my class." She said sharply and dismissed the class.

"I think she hates me." Joey said to Tristan. The day had been uneventful so far, his friends were worried after both Kaiba and Joey left almost at the same time. Yami had still been acting as Yugi and seemed to appear at Joey's side whenever Kaiba was around, warding off the taller brunette with his presence.

It was lunch, and the gang headed for the cafeteria which, as any good school cafeteria, sold food that looked more digested than edible and was certainly higher in calories than any of the small teenage girls wanted to think about.

Tristan and Joey pushed their way to the front of the line, getting their food like starved animals. Tea, Yugi, and Tristan all brought their lunch and were at the table when the other two sat down. Joey sat at the end of the table, his usual spot, and ate his food quickly, almost choking multiple times during his slice of pizza.

"Can we sit here?" A soft, familiar voice asked from behind Joey's side of the table.

_Why are they always sneaking up on ME?_ Joey asked himself mentally.

"Of course." Yami said, noting that Serenity and Seto didn't sit with them before (Possibly because Joey didn't know of their relationship.) Serenity sat across from Joey, next to Tea, and Seto glared at Joey until he moved over a bit, just enough for Seto to squeeze on the overly small bench. Joey immediately felt self conscious and hyper aware, his hip was touching Kaiba's and the warm sensation was exaggerated in his mind. Seto doesn't eat lunch, apparently, because he simply sat with his hands clasped on the table.

"So how is your day so far?" Tristan asked Serenity, his former crush.

"Great… Not too much homework and no exams this week. I'm relieved." Serenity said to Tristan, the rest of the table was feeling awkward… And there was still 20 minutes of lunch left.

Joey glared at Kaiba, he didn't want to let on that he was confused or affected by the happenings of the day before. Kaiba started the shake his knee, a nervous habit, and Joey growled.

"Stop that." Joey said, looking at Seto with his brow furrowed and eyes wide with an immature angry look.

"Stop what." Kaiba said, half-smirking.

"The knee thing. It's driving me insane." Joey growled quietly, not trying to disturb their chatting friends.

"Ok." And Kaiba stopped. Joey raised an eyebrow. _Why was that so easy?_

It wasn't until he felt Kaiba's thigh rest against his own that he lit up with a bright red blush. The other boy shifted slightly, and Joey felt Kaiba's leg rub against his own. He gulped, this was a bad time to be getting seriously turned on. He felt himself harden, though he was wishing it away by biting his lip, but the close proximity to his dream boy was too much.

The lunch passed slowly, each second feeling like an hour to Joey. Yami was quiet most of lunch and decided to direct the group to leave early. Joey wanted to thank him but resisted, not wanting to blow his cover.

"I need to stay here and finish this… apple." Joey said when the group asked him why he wasn't leaving. They all looked at him funny, knowing anything resembling health was not his style.

"I should probably eat something too. You go ahead, Serenity." Kaiba said coolly, not even looking at her. Yami looked at Joey with a very alarmed expression. Joey smiled at Yami, and nodded, trying to communicate that it would be fine… Not like last time.

The group left as lunch was ending. Joey and Kaiba stayed behind, eating their food in silence.

"Aren't you going to ask about yesterday or something?" Joey felt his stomach drop when Seto asked about the day before.

"Uhh… No?" Kaiba smirked, that was Joey's answer to their teacher earlier.

"I had something to say." Kaiba said slowly, as if choosing his words precisely.

"Oh?" Joey said, looking down at his empty tray insecurely.

"Yeah." Kaiba said, Joey could feel his blue eyes boring into him from his side. "Look at me, would you?" Kaiba asked. Joey looked up from the place in which he was happily staring and looking at Kaiba. His eyes were so blue and dark, his face so lovely and unblemished. He blushed, but didn't feel like looking away. "I thought so." Seto smiled, not smirked, but actually smiled.

"Thought what?" Joey asked, suddenly very, very lost as to where this conversation was going. Seto leaned into Joey, stopping inches from his lips.

"You like me." Seto grinned, pulling away, getting up from the table, and leaving.

Joey was horrified.

* * *

End Chapter 5

Chapter 6- Red Eyes? No, Black Eye

A/N: The next chapter, chapter 6, is my favorite. It is also obscenely long... Ehh. You'll like it. Anywho, I guess this counts as a cliffie? I'll let you guys hang in suspense... UNLESS I get alot of reviews begging for chapter 6... We'll see ;) I love you all!


	6. Red Eyes? No, Black Eye!

Chapter 6- Red Eyes? No, Black Eye!

A/N: Hehee... Hi Guys... I've been sooo busy... But here it is, just a little late :D

* * *

Joey was horrified.

Kaiba knew… And, he wasn't angry? But he clearly wasn't happy. _What do I do now? I can't go home again._

Joey got up and decided to go to class a bit late, his teachers were more than used to it. He walked into his English class 5 minutes late, the teacher made a 'tsk' noise at him and noted he was tardy on her attendance list. Joey went to his seat next to Tristan and Yugi (Currently Yami) and sat down. He desperately wanted to talk to someone about this. It had gotten weird between him and Tristan, and they never really talked about serious things together anyways, so Yami was his best choice, as he'd been acting as the resident protective best friend for the last 2 days.

Joey ripped out a piece of notebook paper and wrote on it; **Yami- wanna go to get coffee after school? I need to talk to someone.**

He passed it discretely to the blonde who was actually trying to take notes on the lecture. Yami looked at him and raised an eyebrow, his violet eyes almost playful in taking the note. Yami read it, nodded and began to write. Joey looked at the teacher, she was talking blandly about grammar and it was nothing really that important, at least to Joey. Joey looked down to see the note back on his desk. _Damn, that guy is fast_. Joey chuckled to himself.

**Sure. Meet you in the school lobby after study hall.** was all Yami wrote, but Joey got the point. Joey smiled, he sure loved having friends.

* * *

After School

Joey was in the lobby at precisely 2:31, 1 minute after the last bell rang. His bag was slung over one shoulder and his uniform jacket was already unbuttoned and ruffled. He looked for Yami, he didn't know where Yugi's study hall classroom was, so he didn't know what direction he should be looking. He stood awkwardly against a wall, chewing on his lower lip.

"Joey?" Yami said from next to Joey, making him jump. Joey was pissed to see Tea with Yami, fawning over him.

"Hey." Joey said, looking at Tea but talking to Yami.

"Let's walk Tea to her bus and then go study." Yami said, emphasizing 'study' so that Tea wouldn't feel the need to follow them. Joey grinned and nodded.

"Have a good day, Tea?" Joey asked her, she smiled at him.

"I did. You guys gonna go study? That's cool. I'm glad you and Yami can be friends." Tea said somewhat sincerely. She got onto the bus and waved at the two blondes who waved back, and began walking to the nearest coffee shop.

"Sooo, Yami, thanks for hangin' with me, man." Joey said, realizing it probably a ten to fifteen minute walk they would be doing.

"No problem, Joey. I don't get out much." Yami said with a crooked grin.

"Yeah." Joey said, trying to avoid any silence unsuccessfully, because the majority of the walk was, indeed, silent and Joey was thankful Yami was comfortable not talking much… Poor Joey, however, would occasionally ramble about something or other trying to be entertaining.

"So I saw this crazy duel where this Russian duelist summoned a synchron monster and it kept racking up attack points, it got to like 15,000, and then it LOST because of a stupid trap card. You wouldn't believe how naïve that guy was." Joey rambled as they approached the trendy shop. The boys ordered and got their drinks and sat down. The shop was quiet, mostly students with a few older people quietly talking to each other.

"Is this about Kaiba?" Yami said, looking up at Joey from his seat across from the other boy.

"Uhh, yeah. He did something weird today." Joey said, feeling oddly nervous.

"Oh? Like?" Yami asked, only prodding because he knew Joey wanted him to.

"He told me he knew I like him." Joey said, Yami momentarily choked on his coffee ungracefully.

"Really?" Yami said, his eyes wide and surprised. "Then what?"

"He got up and left. This is such a fucked up situation." Joey said, looking at his drink and feeling defeated.

"That was an unexpected turn. I had my suspicions though." Yami said, looking at his puzzle thoughtfully.

"Suspicions?" Joey asked, not knowing what Yami was talking about.

"That he knew. He acted like it a lot." Yami said, looking at Joey who looked hurt.

"Weird."

"Indeed."

* * *

It was a Tuesday night, nothing special at the Wheeler household. Serenity did her homework in less than an hour and was the phone with Tea the rest of the night. Joey procrastinated doing his homework until nearly 10 o'clock, finishing around 11:30 after struggling with English and math. He logged onto his computer, getting on his instant messenger. Tea and Yugi were online, he assumed talking to each other, until an IM window popped up.

DarkMajjiciann45 popped up with the message "hey joey!" in purple letters.

'hey. Is it Yugi or Yami I'm talkin' to?' Joey replied, seriously wondering.

'Yugi. But you can talk to Yami if you want. It's not like he goes anywhere I don't lol.' Yugi playfully replied.

'Doesn't matter. I haven't talked to you in a bit, Yug. Hows the puzzle?'

'Quiet with lots of things to do. I heard about Kaiba knowing about you liking him…' Yugi typed, Joey was confused about the '…' at the end of his sentence.

'Oh?' Joey asked

'I think you should ask him out.' Yugi replied quickly. Joey's eyes widened- _I can't do that. Not to Serenity. It's not like Kaiba is gay either..._

'Yug, that would be a fine plan except that he's dating MY SISTER. Even if he were to say yes, he would break Serenity's heart and I just couldn't deal with that…' Joey sighed, he was such a good brother.

'I don't think he's very into her anyways. Yami said' Yugi replied for his soulmate

'That doesn't matter. I love Serenity and if she loves Seto, I gotta kick his ass when he breaks her heart… Easier to do if I'm not involved with him... And he's not gay, obviously.' Joey typed, he was really trying to convince himself more than the other, well, otherS.

'A noble cause, Joey, but really, Serenity would be happier with someone who really loves her. Like Tristan. –Yami' Yugi/Yami replied. Joey felt his heart sink, ishould I tell them?/i he felt flustered.

'Guys, if I tell you something will you promise to keep it a secret?' Joey asked, feeling like a little kid.

'I swear on my millennium puzzle.'

'Tristan kissed me, I think. We were both really tipsy.' Joey typed and pressed "send" before he could change his mind. He cringed away from the screen, closing both eyes tightly and just peeking when he heard the reply noise from his computer.

'...really? Tristan's gay?'

'Let's go with confused. And I really don't know what to do.' Joey said, he looked at the clock, it was already midnight.

'I gotta catch some ZZ's… Talk to you guys tomorrow.' Joey typed.

'Alright Joey, don't worry, Yugi his sidekick Yami are on the case!'

'You've got Yami whipped pretty good.' Joey replied and logged off before a reply came, he sighed and smiled. _My life is a drama. It really is. I'm going crazy. I really am._

He walked to his bed and curled under the sheets, _I wish Seto wasn't dating Serenity…_

And a dreamless night came and went.

* * *

Wednesday Morning-

It was May, and the weather had been good for most of the month, but today it poured. Tristan picked Joey up from his house, the blue car was being pelted with unrelenting droplets of water, putting Joey in a mood that can only be described as _cranky_.

"I hate mornings" Joey grumbled to Tristan, the short jog from his house to Tristans car leaving him spotted with rain.

"I know." Tristan replied simply.

"I hate school." Joey said, slouching in his seat and holding his backpack against his chest.

"Me too." Tristan smiled. Unlike Joey, Tristan had no problem with the rain, even as it almost turned his entire windshield white with it's spalatters during the short ride to their high school. Tristan parked, glad he decided to pick Joey up somewhat early and get a decent parking spot. The boys jogged towards the highschool, passing their classmates who were walking with umbrellas and raincoats.

Once in the school, the boys laughed and joked with one another, and walked towards the open cafeteria to sit and wait for school to start. It was another 20 minutes until class, so the boy sat down at their regular lunch table and got out their duel decks.

"I promise to go easy on you, because you're inexperienced." Joey joked.

"Funny, that's what I told your mom last night." Tristan stuck his tongue out at Joey.

"That's a low blow, man…" Joey complained, drawing his cards. It was then that Duke Devlin came and sat next to Joey, looking at his hand of cards.

"You're gonna lose." Duke said, poking Joey in the side.

"What the hell? No I'm not. I was runner-up in duelist kingdom." Joey boasted, holding his head slightly higher in a snotty gesture.

"That was only a few centuries ago, what, weren't you dueling with big stone tablets back then?" Duke laughed, the joke light hearted.

"Whatever, go find some friends that actually like you." Joey glared at Duke, ignoring that Tristan had played a monster face down and was waiting impatiently as the precious pre-class time ticked away.

"Hell no. I'm waiting to see if Serenity is gonna show up." Duke grinned, "You know, I'm irresistible to the ladies." He said, giving Joey his best charming face, his green eyes slightly narrowed.

"She's dating Kaiba, you know, the one that is more rich and popular than you." Joey said, _Bite your tongue, Joey, defending Kaiba like that…_

"I'm so offended…" Duke said, pretending to look hurt. "Seriously, will she be here?" He asked, looking around dramatically.

"I think moneybags is giving her a ride. Or at least he should, being her boyfriend and all. Hey Tristan, why didn't we give Serenity a ride?" Joey asked suddenly, looking to Tristan who had set his cards down, realizing this duel wasn't going to happen during Joey's social hour.

"I don't know. She's your sister. You should have invited her." Tristan shrugged. Joey studied his friend for a minute before feeling slightly disturbed.

_Tristan really doesn't like Serenity… Which means he really does like me… Which is a huge problem because though I like Tristan, it's like a brother! Or a best friend… Shit… _

"Good morning, guys." Tea said, walking towards the table, flanked with Yugi and Ryou

"Hey Tea, Yug, Ryou, what's up?" Joey asked, grinning at his friends as they squeezed to sit down around the table, Tea settling for sitting _on _the actual table on one end, closest to Yugi.

"Not much. Kaiba is here with Serenity, we passed them on the way in as Kaiba had one of his minions carry an umbrella for Serenity." Yugi laughed, looking to Tea and Ryou who giggled as well.

"It was sweet how concerned Kaiba was." Ryou said in his soft voice- delicately pronouncing every syllable. He was less interested in Joey and Kaiba's love triangle and therefore didn't understand when the group, minus Joey, gave him a glare.

"I missed something, eh?" Ryou asked and smiled.

"I'll explain later, Ryou." Tea said in a catty voice, looking up when Serenity and Seto, both perfectly dry except for the bottom on Kaiba's school slacks, walked in and headed for the table. Serenity was out front, she held Kaiba's hand and he loosely allowed it, following with a cringe and holding his expensive briefcase.

Joey felt all the blood go to his cheeks, and he felt his heart begin to race. He remembered the day before, how close Kaiba had been, how alone they had been, and how it'd been in this same spot. Thankfully, class would start in 10 minutes so the group should, reasonably, leave in 5.

"Hey Serenity, Kaiba." Yugi said first, greeting them with a coy look.

"Good morning Yugi!" Serenity said, smiling at her smaller friend. Joey stared at his sister, with the occasional glance at Seto, he noted that Seto was not looking towards Joey, but more towards the conversation. He was able to relax a bit. When the 5-minutes to class bell rang, Joey got up and left with Tristan, Seto walked Serenity to her class. Mrs. Nakamura was not in the class when Joey and Tristan arrived, she usually walked in immediately upon the start bell ringing. Joey sat in his regular seat, the one he was assigned to, that was situated behind Kaiba. When the clock ticked 10 seconds before the bell ringing, Seto Kaiba walked briskly into the room- briefcase in tow- and sat down in front of Joey.

"Don't get any ideas, Mutt." Seto said, looking sneakily over his shoulder. Joey, for the first time in along time, didn't know what to say. He was firstly stunned by Kaiba's spectacular bone structure, and then confused and left utterly baffled when he processed Kaiba's words.

Joey opened his mouth, about to say something, but the bell rang loudly with a slight buzz because of the old sound system. Mrs. Nakamura walked in, her cherry red heels clicking in the otherwise silent classroom.

"Good morning, cherubs." She said smiling.

_Nakamura is such a quack. One day she hates us the next we're cherubs… _ Joey mentally rolled his eyes, he slumped in his chair and stuck his long legs out to either side of his desk, obstructing the aisle slightly.

"We have some announcements from our teams and clubs this morning, children, so I will read them aloud after I take attendance." Joey zoned out when her squeaky voice- that continuously put too much emphasis on her S's- began to talk for more than a few sentences. He said 'here' when he heard his name, but otherwise contemplated what he would do about Kaiba knowing his "secret".

"Mr. Wheeler, please, sit in your chair properly." Mrs. Nakamura barked, Joey didn't even hear her in his distracted state. "Mr. Wheeler!" She said loudly, almost stamping her heeled foot.

"What?" Joey asked, snapping back into reality.

"Sit in your chair properly. Your legs are in the aisle and that could be a safety concern. You cannot take notes sitting like that." She said, smiling quickly, the kind of smile that could only be described in Joey's mind as ifucking psycho/i.

"Ok." Joey said simply, sitting up slightly straighter.

"As if he planned on taking notes anyways." Kaiba said quietly, Joey could feel the eye-roll radiating off of Kaiba as the brunette turned just enough to see Joey over his shoulder.

"God, you're such a dick." Joey snapped, the two were whispering as Nakamura blabbed about the new play the drama club was doing.

"Why thank you, I'm glad you accepted me as your God. Worship freely." Seto said smugly, looking forward at Nakamura once he was finished talking.

_What a smug, pompous, asshole. Dammit._ Joey growled mentally, glaring daggers at the back of Seto's perfectly styled hair. He huffed, sinking down to his poor postured position again subconsciously. The rest of the class went quickly, and without any confrontation. As the bell rang, Joey shoved his notebook and papers into his backpack as quickly as he could and jumped up from his seat, intent on catching up with Tristan who was already leaving class. However, in his haste, he failed to see the leg stuck out under him.

Joey tripped, it was almost slow motion in his mind. He hit the ground with a 'thud' and felt his knee connect with the linoleum, that would certainly hurt tomorrow. Most of the class had filed out, so it wasn't too embarrassing, but when Joey looked up to see Kaiba's electric blue eyes staring down at him, thoroughly amused, he saw red.

"What the hell, Kaiba? What's your problem?" Joey growled loudly.

"Mikako was right. Now you see, it was a safety concern." Kaiba said, though his lips weren't smiling in the least, his eyes were practically laughing. Joey jumped up and flipped Kaiba off as he left the room, Tristan had waited for him outside his class.

"Fuckin' jerk… fuck…" Joey fumed, glaring at the hall as Tristan walked up next to him.

"Dude?" Tristan asked vaguely.

"Kaiba was being an ass, as usual." Joey explained, feeling better during the passing time.

"I don't see what you like about that guy." Tristan said seriously. "He's kind of an ass to you and everyone else. You could have any guy you wanted, basically, and you want that one." Tristan said, looking down insecurely as they walked.

"Dude, that was deep." Joey said jokingly. He laughed nervously, dreading an awkward moment.

"Yeah." Was all Tristan said as he left for his class and Joey for his.

* * *

Lunch

Lunch was uneventful, Serenity and Seto ate with the rest of Joey's friends and the conversation remained light-hearted and teenager-like. When the 5 minute bell sounded, the group got up and headed for their classes.

Joey walked in the back of the group, holding open his textbook and hoping like hell he could cram enough to pass a quiz on the reading homework. He was so engrossed in the parts and functions of a eukaryotic cell (A/N: That's all the only thing useful I learned in highschool bio) that he didn't notice he was walking too slow to keep up with the group, let alone make it to class.

"Mitochondria…. Independent reproduction and DNA…" Joey muttered as his book was slammed shut in front of his nose. He looked up at Kaiba, Joey's eyebrows raised exaggeratedly, making him look utterly innocent. However, upon registering it was Seto he was looking at, his eyes narrowed and he felt an insult coming up his throat. He opened his mouth and Kaiba glared at him harshly.

"Shut up." Seto barked the command, Joey, as undignified as it was, obeyed.

Kaiba stared at Joey, looking as if he were arguing with himself. His stare was unrelenting, and familiar.

"Déjà vu." Joey grinned, trying to make a joke and break the intensity the he felt.

"Didn't I tell you to shut up?" Kaiba said shortly, almost sounding distracted.

"Take a picture, it lasts longer." Joey said, regretting the lame insult as soon as he said it.

"Does that mean you want this done the hard way?" Seto said, confusing the blonde easily.

"Hard way?" Joey asked, looking up and away from Kaiba's eyes and instead studied his hair and forehead. He didn't see it coming when Kaiba roughly crushed his lips onto Joey's.

It wasn't a soft kiss, nor a gentle one. It was not at all forgettable or uncertain as Tristan's was. Seto's lips were hot and unbelievably soft against Joey's own. Joey couldn't breathe- not from a lack of oxygen but from a lack of will to ever stop the moment. He felt himself melt into the innocent kiss, Kaiba set his hands gently on Joey's waist and Joey sighed, blushing deeply and tilting his head up to fix the broken angle. At first, it was a perfect kiss, a perfect moment, and Joey's brain was mush.

Seto pulled back, panting and staring at Joey with a small, but visible, smile. A look of satisfaction washed over his features and he stood up tall, clearing his throat.

"So you broke up with Serenity?" Joey asked, forgetting the fact that his sister and Seto had been a couple at lunch and Joey had been with them ever since, not really leaving time for that.

"Nope." Seto said, a look of baffle quickly moving through his features and then disappearing as quickly as it had come. Joey felt angered, and split.

"You cheated on my sister? With me?" Joey barked, the blush hadn't faded from his face even as the bliss he'd experienced was gone.

"I…" Seto said, actually lost of words due to the blondes violent, and unanticipated, reaction.

"Bastard." Joey growled and pulled back a fist, launching it forward with his body weight and connecting square onto Seto's flawless cheek. Seto stumbled backwards, looking very pissed and glaring at Joey with murder in his eyes.

Seto made a noise like a growl and hit Joey in the eye, Joey didn't feel the pain at first, just felt more angry that Kaiba dare fight back when he was at fault. The two began to brawl, and school workers soon started to try to separate the boys. Blood was dripped erratically on the floor, Kaiba bleeding from his mouth and Joey from a cut on his arm (It was a mystery how it got there though). Both boys had welts on them, and neither looked at all happy with being separated.

They were both taken to the nurses office, and then the principles office. They waited for their turn to talk to the principle and were seated as far from each other as the staff could get. Kaiba took out his laptop and was typing away, Joey couldn't help but hear that Kaiba made more mistakes than usual and way pressing the backspace button almost as many times as the others. Joey felt less angry, more confused, and his face ached from being hit by the bigger boy. Joey sighed, Serenity was going to kill him. His parents were too.

"Mr. Wheeler, your parents have been called and cannot make it today. Mr. Kaiba, since you are your own guardian you will have to understand your punishment on your own." The secretary said. "Please, boys, go in now." She said, opening the principles door. Joey walked in and sat in the chair across from their very stern looking principle, Seto did the same.

"Joey, I might expect this from you, but Mr. Kaiba… This is not reflective of your great success, son." The principle said, Joey rolled his eyes and sighed, of course _he _was the trouble maker. "Tell me, what was this fight about?"

"I don't know, the animal just attacked me." Kaiba said, referring to Joey as an 'animal'. Joey couldn't decide if that was better than 'dog'.

"Oh bullshit. He's cheating on my sister." Joey said, looking at Kaiba as the young CEO simply crossed his legs and closed his eyes.

"Mr. Wheeler, your sisters relationship is none of your business. That was a very bad reaction to a very insignificant problem." Joey opened his mouth to talk, feeling his chest tighten in rage. "You are suspended for the next 4 days." The principle finished.

Kaiba chuckled.

"Mr. Kaiba, since you were the victim, you are aloud a day off to rest and recover and that absence will be excused." The principle said, Joey felt his tired muscles tense once again. "Boys, you may leave now and go home. Joey, do not be within 200 feet of this school for the next 4 days or you will be expelled. Next time, don't use violence." Joey stood up rudely and left, slamming the door behind himself in defiance.

* * *

"Joey, I am so mad at you right now." Was the first thing out of Serenity's mouth as she stormed into Joey's bedroom where he was, uncharacteristically, doing his homework. He looked up at his sister, tears were in her eyes.

"Serenity-" Joey started, standing up from his bed and slowly walking towards his sister who was breathing hard, trying to keep herself from crying.

"I don't wanna hear it. Just because you don't like my boyfriend you go and attack him?" She said loudly, her voice seething.

"Sis- you have to listen to me…" Joey started.

"Why would you do something like that? You could have really hurt him, or gotten hurt, it's so barbaric to fight like that.." Serenity said through tears, her face was red and her tears were all anger.

"Seriously—" Joey started.

"Don't talk to me, Joey!" Serenity said, and took a breath for another long yelling lecture.

"He cheated on you!" Joey blurted out, feeling unsure if that was the right thing the do. Serenity softened instantly, looking confused.

"Wait- what?" She said, standing up straight and wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"He cheated on you so I had to defend you, sis." Joey said softly, walking over to his sister who looked less like a pitbull and more like a hurt puppy.

"How do you know that?" Serenity said, pulling away from a hug her big brother tried to give her.

"Well… I can't tell you that." Joey said, swallowing hard. This was not the direction this was supposed to go.

"You're lying!" She said, pulling away harshly and looking shocked and disgusted.

"I'm not!" Joey defended.

"Then tell me how you know! And who it was with..." She said, Joey understood these were not unreasonable questions in the least… But he was afraid his answer would hurt his sister even more.

"Serenity… Kaiba kissed _me_." Joey said. "I'm so sorry. He started it though! I didn't do anything!" Joey rambled, Serenity didn't look like what he said registered.

"You?" She said cynically. "Seto cheated on me with… _you_?" She said.

"Yes," Joey nodded. Serenity nodded too, turned around, and left. Joey sighed, this sucked. He went to his bed and lay down- feeling completely exhausted mentally and almost thankful for the 4 days off, after he dealt with his parents tonight.

He picked up his cell phone and found Yugi on his contacts, intending to talk to Yami. He pressed 'send' and the phone rang a few times before Yugi's young voice answered.

'Hey Joey.' Yugi said from the other line.

"Hey Yug, can I talk to Yami real quick?" Joey asked, hoping his friend wouldn't be offended.

Yugi laughed, 'Of course, Joey, I'm glad Yami finally made a friend. Just a sec.' Joey heard rustling before the deep, masculine voice of Yugi's soulmate was heard. 'Hello Joey. What's up? I had a bad feeling after lunch today, was that because of you?' Yami asked simply.

"Perhaps. Kaiba kissed me and then we got into a fight and I got suspended and Kaiba got a pat on the back." Joey said, reliving the long day.

'He kissed you?' Yami sounded like he didn't believe Joey. 'Oh, well, this is good right?' Yami finished, hoping it was.

"Well it was amazing, and I mean, _ah-may-zing _until we started beating each other up." Joey said, for the first time since it happened remembering how mind-blowing the simple kiss had been.

'Who threw the first punch?' Yami asked, sounding as if he really was from the same era.

"Me." Joey said, realizing how weird this must have sounded and then continuing, "because he didn't break up with my sister first so he was cheating on her, with me, technically…" Joey sighed.

'Sounds like you did the right thing.' Yami said.

"Yeah, 'cept now Serenity is super mad at me and Kaiba will probably never talk to me again." Joey said, feeling extremely defeated and hopeless.

'I see. Serenity will forgive you , I know it, and Kaiba won't be able to stay away for long.' Yami said happily.

"I thought it was the millennium necklace that saw into the future." Joey said sarcastically.

'It doesn't take a psychic to see your sister loves you more than anyone and Kaiba wants to rip off your clothes and do you in the middle of class.' Yami stated, Joey went quiet from Yami's unusually vulgar language, and then decided to make a joke.

"I'm pretty sure I will be the one doing Kaiba, not the other way around." Joey said with a chuckle, "and I don't think he does, really." Joey said, looking at his feet.

'Joey, you stick around for 5 thousand years and you know these things. I gotta go now, Yugi wants to play.' Yami said.

"Use protection, everytime." Joey joked, Yami huffed.

'Not like that, you pervert.' Yami said and hung up, Joey closed his phone and set it down. 20 minutes later, his parents pulled into the driveway.

* * *

Joey woke up the next morning to his mom turning on his light at 6 am.

"Mom, when people are suspended they don't go to school…" Joey whined.

"I want you awake anyways." She said shortly, the Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler really hadn't gone that hard on Joey, he'd been suspended before, but they were certainly not going to let him sleep in on a Thursday.

"Fine, fine, I'm up." Joey said, his mother walked over to his bed and sat on the edge.

"Honey, do you know what is wrong with Serenity?" Mrs. Wheeler asked, looking less mad and more concerned.

"Uhh, besides me getting into a fight with her boyfriend?" Joey asked, his mother knew everything he didn't want her too.

"Yes. She seems so sad." His mother sighed and looked at her son, "I don't know why you got into a fight with Seto," Joey cringed when his mother used Kaiba's first name, "But you don't do that without reason, despite what the principle said. I know that something happened and I'd like to know what." She said, Joey nodded and yawned. Mrs. Wheeler left and closed Joey's door but left his overhead light on to remind him he was still suppose to be awake. He groaned.

"Stupid, stupid suspension…" Joey complained, putting on a new T-shirt and sweatpants. He trudged downstairs, got himself a bowl of cereal, and sat down at the small breakfast table between the kitchen and living room. Serenity walked into the room, her usual sweet and perky nature no longer exuding from her and instead she barely glanced at her brother.

"Good morning, sis." Joey said, feeling hopeful his sister would forgive him. Serenity, like Joey, was not one to hold a grudge.

"Hi Joey." She replied coolly, she grabbed a breakfast bar and walked out of the kitchen. Joey sighed.

_This sucks. I didn't wanna hurt Serenity… This was particularly so I wouldn't hurt Serenity! Dammit. Dammit. Dammit!_ Joey grumbled to himself, shoveling his cereal into his mouth as quickly as he could.

* * *

Joey's Thursday had been very, very boring. He spent the day doing homework and watching daytime television which was not as interesting as it sounds. He watched duel re-runs, he shuffled his deck and admired his Red Eyes Black Dragon, he took a shower, nothing overall very exciting. At 3:00, he heard a knock at his door. He muted the TV- which was showing an infomercial on something Joey had no interest in or need for.

He walked to the front door, his hair still a mess from not being brushed after his shower and his clothes wrinkled. A deep purple and green bruise was slowly spreading across his face as the day went on, as well as a few smaller ones on his arms. The person outside knocked again.

_So impatient… Who the hell knocks on my door at 3 in the afternoon…_ Joey opened the door and instantly felt his own nostrils flare.

"What the hell do you want, asshole?" Joey spat at Kaiba, who was looking almost as bruised as Joey- except his face bruise was on his cheek and chin and a different shade of purple.

"Is Serenity home yet?" Kaiba said, looking away from Joey and instead inside the empty house.

"No. She doesn't usually come home until 3:30. Bye now." Joey said, closing the door in Kaiba's face. However, the brunetter raised a hand and lay it on the door, holding it open and rolling his eyes.

"I'm not leaving until I see your sister. She won't answer my calls." Kaiba explained, looking _almost_ sorry.

"You can wait right where you are for all I care." Joey raised an eyebrow and attempted to shut the door again, only to find Kaiba's arm strength similar to pushing against a wall.

"Bullshit. I won't bite. Lemme in." Kaiba said, extending his arm and shoving Joey out of the way like an attacking chihuahua. He huffed as Kaiba entered without his permission.

_Deju vu… Seto… Ugh._ Joey thought as he found himself holding open his front door as the other boy waltzed into the living room.

Joey slammed the door and followed Kaiba- fuming the entire way.

* * *

A/N: :D? Do you love me or... do you love me?

Reviews make me happy!


	7. At My Door AGAIN!

Chapter Seven- At MY Door Again?

A/N: Hey guys! Hope you liked my long chapter xD. Here is a short one for you...

Oh, and shout outs to Blackstarz and Joey Kaiba for messaging me :D I now consider us friends, like it or not, and I love you. Basically. No, it really doesn't take much.

I love all of my reviewers too, though, and I hope that this story will keep making you all happy and reviewing :).

* * *

Joey slammed the door and followed Kaiba- fuming the entire way.

Kaiba sat down at the small breakfast table; he took his laptop out from his briefcase (Which was actually more of a carry-whatever-a-business-guy-needs bag than anything else. He fingers flew over the keys, clicking softly in the otherwise silent room. Joey walked over to the TV and turned the sound back on- realizing his infomercial was over and onto some other bland paid programming. He flipped through the channels until he could find a good duel, he could never get enough dueling, and turned it up. The realistic sounds of the monsters and the insults between the duelists filled Joey's living room. Kaiba cleared his throat loudly, obviously indicating he was annoyed. _Asshole. I'll watch my own damn TV in my own damn house and thur ain't notin' you can do about it. _Joey thought with a smug grin.

"Could you please turn that down? I have important information to analyze." Kaiba said over the noise, looking directly at Joey who glanced back casually.

"It's plenty quiet out on the front lawn, ya know." Joey replied, trying to hint very obviously that he didn't like Kaiba in his house. Joey heard Kaiba let out a breath dramatically- an exasperated sigh.

"Then I won't work." Kaiba said, closing his laptop and crossing his arms.

_He looks like a little kid who didn't get what they wanted and is too dignified to cry about it. Hah! But damn, he looks good when he's pissed… _Joey gulped. _Bad thoughts! Be gone!_ Joey cursed himself, he just beat the shit out of Kaiba (In reality- they beat the shit out of each other) and now he thought he looked sexy again... Kaiba took out his blackberry- it was icy blue- and checked the time. Joey looked at the TV which read '3:04', Serenity needed to come home immediately, as far as either was concerned.

"What duel is this? That's an old version of the duel arenas." Kaiba said, studying his own creation on the TV screen from across the room.

"It's the European Championships last year, I think." Joey replied excitedly, not realizing yet that he was having an almost pleasant conversation with Kaiba

"Wrong, mutt, that must be the year before, because that ancient piece of software is way out dated for any championship." Kaiba said. "Maybe its last year in _dog_ years." Kaiba finished. Joey chuckled.

"That didn't make any damn sense. Get too many painkillers for your boo-boos?" Joey mocked, sticking out his tongue playfully. Joey heard Kaiba snort.

"I don't need any painkillers, you hit like a fucking girl." Kaiba replied quickly- not wanting to let Joey win their small dispute.

"Yes, my girly hits left a nice bruise all over your precious face." Joey rolled his eyes, "I'm surprised your ego fit into this house." Joey finished, looking at the duel and sulking.

"This face impressed your sister enough." Kaiba hissed, he knew the 'sister' card always got Joey riled up.

"Hah, not for long. You really hurt her, infact you better be here to tell her you're scum and beg her forgiveness. And then she should dump your ass." Joey barked, eyebrows furrowed and his lips a thin line full of tension.

"Oh, so you could have me?" Kaiba said dryly, Joey took in a sharp breath. "Dream on, stupid mutt." Kaiba finished coldly.

Joey felt like someone had stabbed him in the heart and twisted it around a few thousand times. He bit his lip, the helpless feeling of rejection hit him like a wall at 60 mph. He looked around, trying to collect his thoughts and come up with something to say.

"Asshole. I wouldn't want you if you were the last _person_ on Earth." Joey said, "And I'm not gay!" Joey added quickly, knowing that was a complete and blatant lie. However, for whatever reason, he felt the need to be defensive around the CEO.

"You were liking that kiss a lot yesterday for being a straight boy." Kaiba said, the sarcasm oozing off his words.

"I'm pretty sure _you_ kissed _me_ making _you_ the gay one." Joey said, he got up from the couch and walked to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. He grabbed a cold soda and blinked a few times, realizing he was getting more emotional the more he was around Kaiba. And that damned scent was floating around him wantonly.

"Bi and gay are different, stupid." Kaiba said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Joey thought for a minute… _If Kaiba isn't straight- that means…. Shit, who's kidding, I never had a chance with him._

"Sorry. I'll brush up on my faggot lingo one of these days." Joey spat and left the room- he instantly felt guilty. The most Kaiba had done that day was mock him and call him stupid- Joey had taken the low blow. The low blow he'd been hit with himself a few times. He sighed and walked back into the kitchen, soda still unopened. He sighed, and looked at Kaiba who was back on his laptop typing furiously.

"Dude, I'm sorry. That was too much. I didn't mean it." Joey said, looking at the ground, honestly sorry.

"Whatever." Kaiba replied, giving Joey the cold shoulder. Joey's head snapped up, he felt suddenly pissed that Kaiba didn't even accept his apology.

"You could at least acknowledge that I'm sorry." Joey said insistently. He knew he was acting like a spoiled toddler.

"What. Ever." Kaiba mumbled again, looking intently at the screen. Joey shook his head a few times, feeling the anger prickle up his spine again.

Before Joey could say anything more, anything worse, the front door opened and Serenity walked in- taking off her shoes.

"Home. Is Seto here? His car is outside..." She asked from the doorway.

"Yeah, sis, he's in here." Joey replied, glaring at the taller brunette who slowed his typing and began clicking a bit. Serenity walked quickly into the room and narrowed her eyes at her boyfriend.

"Why are you here, Seto?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"You wouldn't accept my calls last night." He replied, still looking at the computer. _That jerk isn't even looking at her. What an ungrateful bastard._ Joey felt like slapping Kaiba, again.

"Seto, are you gay? And do you like Joey?" She asked suddenly and the typing and clicking stopped dead in its tracks. Joey gulped, gaping at his sister and feeling heat pool in his cheeks. Kaiba started typing again, slowly.

"I'm bisexual." Kaiba replied stiffly, his fingers sticking on keys every now and then. Joey noticed his knee begin to shake- a nervous habit. "I want to apologize for any misunderstanding. On that note, I'd like to take you to dinner tonight if you would like." Kaiba changed the subject, though it didn't go unnoticed.

"I've got homework tonight. Maybe this weekend." Serenity said softly, Joey left the room quickly, scurrying past his sister and out of the kitchen. He jogged up the stairs and went into his room. He closed the door too hard and it made a loud 'slam', but he didn't care. He flopped down on his small bed, groaning into the comforter. _Fuck, fuck, fuckity, fuck…_ Joey sighed- it was extremely early but he felt so tired he slept until the next morning.

* * *

"Joey! Time to wake up! It's 6!" Mrs. Wheeler said, turning on her sons light and walking over to his bed.

"Mhrrgh?" Joey groaned, his eyes were red and he rubbed them.

"Are you ok honey? You've slept for 14 hours darling." His mother said. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she looked concerned.

"Oh? Yeah. Just tired. I haven't been sleeping well…" Joey said, realizing he could milk this into getting his mother to leave. He had a morning _problem _and his mother was bothering him.

"Oh? Ok honey. I'm going to make breakfast so come on down in a half an hour or so." She said and smiled, she touched her son's forehead and left the room- leaving the light on and closing his door with a soft 'click'.

_So, another day off? Damn, have to waste a perfectly good Friday night being grounded… _he sighed. Joey sat up and looked at his erection, he glared at it and mumbled a few cuss words- cursing the damn thing, and the dreams that so often caused this problem.

_Cold shower. That's what I need._ Joey thought to himself, he got up and tucked his hardness into the waist of his sweatpants- hiding it well. He grabbed a towel and headed into the hall and into the bathroom. He locked the door- just in case, and set the towel down on the counter. He walked over to the shower- turning the nostle on and putting more cold than warm.

_I hate cold showers… They're… cold…_ Joey grumbled to himself, touching the cool spray from the shower head. He undressed himself- brushing over his erection and hissing lightly- he hadn't released in almost a week now and it was becoming clear.

He stepped into the cool water- gasping when the water hit his chest- his erection went away within a few seconds.. He really did hate being cold.

* * *

Chapter Seven End

Chapter 8: Me Casa Es Su Casa

A/N: You'll like the next chapter. I made myself laugh multiple times while writing it. A little light heartedness after all this drama! REVIEW :D


	8. Me Casa Es Su Casa

One Sister Away- Chapter 8- Me Casa Es Su Casa

* * *

Friday was suppose to a day where teenagers like Joey Wheeler hung out with their friends- maybe partying a little or sitting back and dueling together casually…

But not this Friday. This Friday, Joey spent his day doing yard work for his mother who insisted he do something useful while suspended. At 3 in the afternoon- Joey decided to be done for the day. He'd been working since 9- for a total of 6 hours- and was thoroughly exhausted as he trudged into the house covered in dirt and tree sap. He went upstairs- stripping off the sweaty and soiled clothing as he went. Upon reaching his room he took out his favorite pair of sweatpants and pulled them on.

"Much better." Joey chirped. He dropped his dirty clothes in the middle of his room and headed downstairs for some relaxing TV and a soda. He sat down, opened his cola, and turned on the TV. He decided to watch the random daytime talk-show that was on, though his body ached and his feet burned as he tried to relax. Within 10 minutes of his relaxing, he heard a soft knock at the door.

_Kaiba didn't come back, did he?_ Joey thought with a moment of panic. He swallowed hard and yelled from the couch, "It's open!" Joey said, realizing after the fact that was probably a bad idea.

"You know, I could be a serial killer." Said a deep voice from the foyer- Joey heard the front door click shut. He recognized Yami's voice immediately.

"Hey, dude, whatcha' doin' here?" Joey asked, looking up at his friend who flopped down next to him, his backpack on the floor next to their couch.

"Thought you might want a visitor. You missed a ton of work too- I brought it for you." Yami smiled at Joey- making no move to actually get the work which Joey took as a cue that he wanted to hang out.

"Sweet. Thanks for getting that for me." Joey replied, taking a sip of his coke. He innocently offered Yami a drink from his coke too- to which Yami replied by getting up and getting one of his own from the refrigerator.

"That was cold." Joey said playfully.

"I don't want any Kaiba cooties." Yami said, Joey choked on his drink- feeling the bubbles stinging in his nose.

"You had to bring it up, didn't you?" Joey snapped, feeling bad when Yami looked at him like he was crazy. "Well, it's not like you didn't like his cooties. In fact, I'd go as far as to say you'd like them**all** over you." Yami said matter-of-factly. _That guy can make even the dirtiest comments sound downright prude._

"Shut up, Yami." Joey said, not harshly in any way.

* * *

Serenity walked in the door at 3:45- a bit late for her but she often spent extra time with Tea when she was upset.

"Hey sis!" Joey called when she walked in the door quietly- he'd been waiting to see if his sister was going to talk to him.

"Hi Joey.. Oh, Yami, hi." Serenity said as she walked in, smiling brightly at the two. _She's feeling better…_

"Hello there, Serenity." Yami said, glancing at Joey who looked like he'd won the lottery.

"Feeling better, Serenity?" Joey asked cautiously, though he was grinning ear to ear.

"Yeah. Me and Seto worked it out." Joey felt a stab in his chest, but he was really glad to see his sister feeling better.

_I'm glad they worked it out… She looks so happy now… but…. ugh_

"Great." Joey said and jumped up to hug his sister forcefully- giving her his classic bear hug.

"In fact, he invited our family over for dinner tonight at the Kaiba Estate~!" Serenity chimed, Joey could have sworn he felt the tiniest tinge of sarcasm on the end of those words. "I'd love it if you came too, Yami. I think Joey would feel better with a friend." Serenity said, smiling at the two, she hugged her brother again, though he was become very pale very fast. Serenity left the room and ran upstairs.

"Yugi is supposed to work the shop tonight..." Yami muttered, looking at the ground.

"Well call gramps and tell him he-you can't make it. I need you, Yami. I'll die otherwise." Joey begged, dropping to his knees and hugging Yami's legs for dear life.

"Oh, dammit. Yugi- you do it." Yami said, rolling his eyes and attempting to take a step backwards. The millennium puzzle moved a bit and Yami's sharp angles softened and his eyes turned to a light, sweet violet.

"Yug, I love you for this." Joey said truthfully.

"I know. I'm such a good friend." Yugi said and stuck his tongue out- taking out his cell phone and dialing. "Hey gramps…. Can I have dinner with Joey tonight?... We need to do homework…. Thanks…. I love you too! Bye!" Yugi said, smiling. "No threesomes with Yami and Kaiba, either." Yugi said with a mock glare.

"Well there goes my plan." Joey said, getting up and fake punching Yugi in the arm.

Yugi shook his head, the millennium puzzle began to move and shake again, causing Yami to come back from his place in the puzzle.

"Sweet!" Joey said, "Let's go play Xbox!" Joey said, turning around and running towards his room- leaving the TV on and his coke can empty. Yami rolled his eyes and shut off the TV, then followed his friend.

* * *

"These houses just get bigger and bigger…" Mrs. Wheeler said from the passenger seat in their small Chevy Malibu.

"Mr. Kaiba is a successful young man, what can you expect? Only the best for our Serenity." Mr. Wheeler said, proudly holding his head high as he drove down the road. The large properties had quite a bit of space between them- most having large gates and spectacular landscaping outside them.

"Excited, honey?" Mrs. Wheeler asked, looking back at her daughter who was sitting between Yami and Joey.

"Yeah… I've never seen it before! Seto doesn't talk much about his stuff." Serenity said sweetly, blushing and looking at her heel-clad feet.

"Here we are." Mr. Wheeler said, pulling up. "This must be it, 3528 Walnut Street." The car pulled up the gate, and a man in a suit approached the car. Mr. Wheeler rolled down the window to speak with him.

"Name please." The man said boredly, looking at his notes for the day.

"Wheeler." Mr. Wheeler replied.

"Go ahead. Let me get the gate for you. Enjoy your visit at the Kaiba Estate." The man said in a very scripted tone, walking to a small booth. The gate swung away from them smoothly- and the Wheelers (And Yami) drove through. The driveway was long- at least a half mile. The Kaiba Mansion was impressive though. It was large and white- looking more like a hotel than a place for two teenage boys to live. The design was very symmetrical, large windows on the bottom floor and smaller, more normal windows on the top. Joey reasonably assumed these must be bedrooms… His eyes got wide.

The Wheelers drove up to front of the door- there was a structure over this section of the driveway to protect from rain. Another man- dressed identically from the one at the gate, briskly walked over to the car and opened all 4 doors rapidly, Joey almost couldn't believe how fast he'd done it.

"Hello Wheeler family. I am Mr. Kaiba's personal valet and I will park your car in a more convenient area if you would like." The man said, he was much more cheerful than the last man. Mr. Wheeler handed the man the keys. The perky valet bowed and got in the car, driving away.

"I guess we'll knock?" Mrs. Wheeler asked her husband playfully- giggling at the extravagant house. The group walked up to the door, and knocked. There were a few voices from behind the door and then it opened to reveal Mokuba, looking up at them and grinning.

"Hi!" He said to Mr. Wheeler.

"Hello." Mr. Wheeler replied, looking slightly confused.

"I'm Mokuba Kaiba, Seto's brother." Mokuba said, skillfully reading the mans confusion. He greeted them and led them into the large house. The first thing Joey noticed was the staircase- it began as one about 15 feet from the door and then split into two leading up to the upper level. The house was very open- much to Joey's surprise- and the living room to the right of the front door was lit only with sunlight- it was beautiful.

"Nice house." Yami breathed to Joey- Joey glanced at the pharaoh.

"Wouldn't an ancient pharaoh be used to rich things like this?" Joey said smiling at Yami

"Well, yes. But that doesn't mean I can't appreciate nice architecture." Yami said, looking at and around as the group was lead by Mokuba to the back of the house- to the dining room.

"Seto got caught up with work late, some dummy in Europe messed up his software and caused the German servers to crash or something like that, he should be here in a few. Until then, we have soup!" Mokuba said. The table wasn't overly large or luxurious- but it was certainly something to appreciate. It could seat probably 15 people if they sat close together-so only having 7 (Including Mokuba) gave each person quite a bit of room. Mr. Wheeler and Mrs. Wheeler sat on one side, Serenity sat on the end, and Yami, Joey, and Mokuba sat on the other long side. The ate their soup quietly, savoring the delightful taste.

"So what grade are you in, Serenity?" Mokuba asked her, since he sat next to her.

"11th." She replied softly.

"How does that work? If Joey is in 11th grade too?" Mokuba asked, his brow furrowed, he obviously was very good at acting more interested than he was, a trait Seto never got.

"We're 11 months apart.. It just worked out." Serenity replied, not going into much detail. Yami and Joey whispered to one another- joking lightly. Yami was trying to keep Joey from having a panic attack and Joey was trying to convince Yami he was fine.

"Sorry for keeping you." Came Kaiba's husky voice from the doorway. Joey inhaled sharply- causing him to get soup stuck in his airway. He coughed violently for a few minutes- everyone looking at him with annoyed stares, except for Yami who just gently patted him on the back.

Joey couldn't help it, though, Kaiba looked amazing. He wore a black dress shirt tucked in neatly to his black dress pants. The first two buttons of his shirt were open- letting his porcelain white skin show just a bit. His body was easy to see through the clothes- lean and lanky with wide shoulders. Joey felt like drooling. Every few minutes, Yami would have to jab him in the side with his elbow to remind him to eat and/or look elsewhere. Every once and awhile Yami would whisper something to Joey to make him laugh, lightening the mood.

"So who is your chef, Seto?" Mr. Wheeler asked, feeling comfortable enough to use Kaiba's first name.

"Antonio Barotelli. He's an Italian chef. Not very well known but very good at what he does, as you can see." Seto said coolly, his dark eyes looking smug and prideful.

"I'm impressed." Mr. Wheeler said, taking a bite of his food.

"Should I be worried that I don't know what this is?" Joey whispered to Yami under his breath.

"You should be worried that Kaiba poisoned it." Yami chuckled, looking up at Joey and smiling.

Joey glanced at Kaiba who was, shockingly enough, glaring daggers at Yami. His blue eyes were stone cold- and the muscles around them tight and tense making Kaiba look old and senile.

Joey cleared his throat, Yami looked up at him, saw he was glancing at Kaiba, and looked at the brunette himself. Kaiba looked away, understanding the exchange, and jumped into the conversation again.

"What was that about?" Yami asked especially quietly, Joey almost thought he'd begun hearing things at how subtle the pharaoh got.

"I don't know. Maybe that threesome is on after all— OW!" Joey squeaked, jumping sporadically and knocking the table with his knees. Yami had elbowed him especially hard- hard enough that the spot his boney elbow had hit ached and would probably bruise. The conversation went silent and the whole group stared at Joey with questioning gazes, even Yami looked at him with a tilted head.

"Sorry- I bit my tongue." Joey said, giving Yami a side look and meaning the statement as an apology. Kaiba gave him a nasty look, curling his nose and glaring. He wasn't nearly as hot when he was acting disgusted.

"Why don't we go sit in the family room and have desert there?" Seto asked his guests, standing up from his seat, pausing for the others, and then pivoting 180 degrees and heading out the large doorway at his end of the table.

They obviously weren't going to the living room in the front of the house- they turned a left corner and were suddenly in a large and beautifully decorated room. The room was a deep red- mahogany really. The couches looked untouched and brand new- Joey hesitated before sitting on a small leather couch with Yami, not wanting to scratch the gorgeous leather.

"I'm glad you all could make it." Mokuba said suddenly, breaking the silence as everyone settled and the waiter brought out small slices of cake on delicate dishware. When Joey was handed his, he engulfed it almost whole, taking a total of two bites of the white cake and it's blue frosting. When done with his piece he awkwardly held the plate on his lap as the conversation started again. Joey wasn't particularly interested in what they all were saying- his parents talked about how good of a student Serenity was and Seto talked about his company. It was nothing exciting or personal, like the last time they sat down together as a group. The waiter came around, finally, and took Joey's plate from his fumbling hands.

"Excuse me, Kaiba, where is the bathroom?" Yami said during a short pause in conversation. Kaiba looked at him for a moment, blinking twice, before answering.

"I'll show you. It's a bit out of the way." Kaiba replied and got up, walking out of the room and intending Yami to follow.

"Good cake." Joey said with a grin, his sister smiled at him.

"Yes, really." Serenity said. Mokuba chatted with Serenity, the rest of the group politely listening, until Seto came back and sat down wordlessly. He looked bothered, but didn't he always look bothered?

"Sorry about that." Seto said, putting on his cold and business face suddenly. _He seems different- angry a little? I hope he didn't argue with Yami… It's not like they got along during any of the tournaments._

"Actually Seto, we better get going once Yugi comes back." Mr. Wheeler said, looking at his watch.

"Alrighty then." As if on cue, Yami walked in, looking as composed as ever. Joey stood up, and then the others. The Kaiba brothers lead them to the front door- weaving through the different halls and rooms.

"It's nice been seeing you all again." Seto said to Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler. As the Wheeler family (and Yami) walked past, Joey looked up at Seto- meeting his eyes and melting like M&M's in a hot car. Seto looked at him- just for a few moments, his eyes screaming something like they had before Seto had kissed him, but Seto looked away before Joey could say anything. The memory of Seto kissing him was too much for the moment and Joey practically sprinted to the car, climbing inside and staring at his feet.

"Yugi, would you like a ride to the game shop?" Mr. Wheeler asked the quiet car as they pulled out of the long driveway and onto the spotless street.

"That would be lovely. Thank you." Yami replied, playing his best Yugi act. The ride home was quiet, everyone was tired as the clock ticked towards 9.

"Bye!" Yami said with a wave, getting out the car as they stopped in front of the modest Mouto GameShop.

"See ya tomorrow." Joey said, "Oh wait, maybe not! See you sometime!" Joey said, remembering he was suspended and therefore probably grounded. Mr. Wheeler pulled away from the gameshop and made the short drive home to their proportionally small and cozy household.

"Man, our house is ghetto." Joey commented as he took off his seatbelt and opened his door.

"Oh, Joey. Our house is fine." Mrs. Wheeler scolded in her none-too-critical way.

"Yes, Joseph, don't go insulting our house. We worked hard for this." Mr. Wheeler said, his ego slightly dampened from seeing the Kaiba Estate.

"Yes, dad." Joey murmured, he cringed whenever he said 'dad'. It wasn't that his dad beat him or anything- but Mr. Wheeler never took a real interest in his sons' life and therefore never spent anytime with Joey specifically, making their relationship strained.

Joey walked into the house and split with his family. Serenity was almost swooning over Seto and his property- something Joey didn't really understand.

_Hell, I'd take him without it. Haha, I'd take him anytime. Anywhere. Take. Yes. _ Joey chuckled to himself at his own lame joke, flopping onto his bed as his cell phone started to vibrate with an incoming call.

"Hi." Joey answered, he could see it was Yugi calling- but whether it was Yugi or Yami was a mystery.

'Hey Joey!' Yugi's sweet voice came through the line. _Why is Yugi calling?_ "Hey Yug. Whassup?" Joey asked, genuinely curious as to why his smaller friend was calling.

'Kaiba confronted Yami when you guys were at his estate. I saw the whole thing. He's totally into you.' Yugi said bluntly, not bothering to beat around the bush at all. Joey remained silent for a few seconds.

"And?" Was all he could think to say.

'And he thought you and I were an item… Hah!' Yugi said with a giggle. 'He was apparently very concerned about it.'

"Could you start from the beginning?" Joey asked, not liking how Yugi gave him sparse details out of order.

'So Yami had to go to the bathroom, right? You remember that?' Yugi started.

"Yes I do. Kaiba went to show him the way." Joey completed the first part of Yugi's story.

'Yes. So the bathroom was really close, actually, and easy to find. Anyways, Kaiba stopped like 10 feet outside the living room and turned around and glared at Yami and was all like "What's with you and Joey?" and Yami was like, "What are you referring to, Kaiba?". Kaiba then was like, "Are you…. Dating…. Or something?" He asked, but really slowly and stuff. Then Yami, being Yami, was like, "I don't think that's any of your business. Ask Joey if you're so concerned." And then Yami went into the bathroom and left Kaiba all alone.' Yugi finished and took in a deep breath after saying the words quickly and excitedly.

"Yami is evil." Joey said, narrowing his eyes at the empty room in front of him.

'Yes he is. In a good way~!' Yugi playfully defended his other half.

"Thanks for the info, Yug, why did you call and not him anyways?"

'He's tired.' Yug said simply.

"Uhmhm." Joey mumbled. "I gotta go, Yug. I'll see how grounded I am and I'll call you tomorrow." Joey said and hung up.

Being suspended sucked.

* * *

"Please?" Joey whined.

"Joseph… If your father knew you acted like this…."

"PLEASE?" He groaned louder, practically laying on the kitchen counter like a dying animal. He was currently begging his mother to let him go out with his friends- she was much easier to convince than his father and much more likely to let him.

"Joseph… If your father finds out about this, you sneaked out and I had no idea, got it?" Mrs. Wheeler finally said with a sigh, pretending to brush off the counter and get her dramatic son off of it. "Thanks! I love you, mom!" Joey said quickly, he kissed her on the cheek and ran upstairs to call Tristan. He picked up his phone and pressed '2' and then send.

'Hello?' Tristan's voice asked sleepily.

"Hey man! Let's go to the arcade!" Joey said, pulling out his clean clothes for the day.

'Can't. Big math test on Monday.' Tristan yawned.

"…really?" Joey asked with the best hurt voice he could muster.

'…But I guess a few hours at the arcade can't hurt…' Tristan finally sighed after a few minutes. 'I need to shower. I'll pick you up in like a half an hour, k?' He said.

"Ok! See ya then!" Joey hung up and realized he should probably shower too.

* * *

"Oh man, I'm so glad to be outta that damn house." Joey said, sitting down in Tristan's little car and grinning at his friend.

"Yeah, man, I don't know how you could stand it." Tristan agreed, putting the car in 'D' and pulling away from the Wheeler's curb.

"Me either. Did anyone tell you why I'm suspended?" Joey asked honestly.

"Yeah. Sucks." Tristan replied, almost coldly. Joey decided to shrug it off.

"So… Let's stop by Devlin's store, ok? I need to look into getting a few new trap cards…" Joey said.

"Okay, we'll go there first." Tristan said, turning towards the shopping center.

Upon arriving at Duke Devlin's massive game shop- the two boys could see it was definitely a buzzing Saturday morning. It was a nice day- not particularly hot but certainly sunny enough to be more than comfortable. Tristan and Joey walked into the brightly colored game shop, looking at the cards and, more importantly, their prices.

"Hey guys!" Duke said, throwing an arm around Tristan and the other around Joey- giving the two a big grin.

"Hey Devlin. What's the friend discount at this place?" Joey asked, poking him in the side.

"Discount? What's that?" Duke played innocent, sticking his tongue out at the blonde.

"C'mon man your prices are insane." Joey whined, making a pathetic face at his emerald-eyed friend.

"I could give you a brother of my girlfriend discount…" Duke said slyly- giving Joey a grin that he would describe as utterly _creepy_. Joey glared at him and pried Duke's arm off of his shoulder.

"I'm outta luck then." Joey said, leaning against the glass counter and looking at his two friends. However, when he scanned the crowd he noticed a certain brunette walking into the game shop, looking very uncomfortable and slightly lost.

"Shit!" Joey said, ducking between Tristan and Duke.

"What the hell man?" Duke said, kneeing Joey in the shoulder.

"Speaking of my sister, why is her boyfriend here?" Joey hissed- punching Dukes leg.

"Kaiba?" Duke asked, and turned around, he yelled louder, "KAIBA!" Duke said, his voice cracking causing Tristan and Joey to laugh. Joey turned around and pretending to look at the cards on the bottom shelf of the glass container.

"Devlin. I'm here for our meeting." Kaiba said in his professional voice. "Mutt's on the ground where he should be. Good." Kaiba said and nodded, almost smirking but not quite.

"Well, I basically want 700 of the new duel disks…" Devlin said, "Doesn't take a meeting to work that out." He grinned.

"That's all?" Kaiba asked, raising an eyebrow. Why the hell do you need to talk to the CEO to order 700 duel disks?

"Yeah, basically." Devlin shrugged.

"He also wants your girlfriend." Joey added, standing up and brushing himself off. Kaiba just rolled his eyes.

"Serenity has good tastes. Which is why she chose me, not you, playboy." Kaiba said, he pivoted in his usual fashion and walked out of the shop.

"Dude what the hell." Duke growled at Joey, glaring.

"What? It's true." Joey justified.

"I almost have Serenity where I want her. Then she'll dump that guy all on her own and come running to Dukey-poo." Duke said, referring to himself in the third person.

"Don't talk about putting my sister anywhere." Joey huffed, offended that Duke would dare talk about his sister in his presence. However, at this point, Duke seemed like a much better boyfriend for Serenity. "You know dude, you'd probably be a better boyfriend than moneybags though…. Though that's not sayin' much!" Joey joked, Duke, however, looked a little confused and very serious.

"Why's that? He being an ass to my girl?" Duke puffed out his chest like a male bird.

"He's an ass to everyone." Joey replied boredly. He glanced at Tristan who was silently watching, clearly not having anything to say. "When he apologized for cheating on her, he was still working on his computer.. Didn't even look up! I shoulda knocked him a good one right there if my fist wasn't still sore." Joey said, looking away dramatically and raising his nose in the air.

"Tch. She'll be mine soon enough." Duke said, "I guess I could give you a friend discount if you want… Like… 5% off?"

* * *

A/N: Well there's a chapter for ya! I'm not very happy with it- but I'm staying up late now and I've got a bunch of ideas to wrap up this story scribbled on a piece of notebook paper… I probably made this stuff way too obvious- but hey, I'm new to fanfics still. Kinda. A little bit.

PLEASE REVIEW :D Suuper sorry for the long delay. I'm hella lazy. Motivate me? :) And I've been working on my Beyblade fics obsessively. One Sister Away gets forgotten about easily. Review for me! Thanks in advance, critters 3 3


	9. Changing Tides

Chapter 9- Changing Tides

A/N: SUPER FAST UPDATE SHAAAAZAM!

A note to my dear "Lili". Thank you for the kind review and I am so happy you enjoy this story as much as you do :). Your review made my day and has encouraged me to actually write an 11th chapter to tie off all loose ends with this story. I love you :).

* * *

**DING DING DING!** The arcade game screamed as Joey beat another round. Joey laughed and continued pressing buttons furiously- looking to beat the high score. Tristan was behind him, cheering him on in his epic battle against the virtual zombies. When the zombie eventually reached Joey and tore his head off, the machine made a sad noise and a bright red 'GAME OVER' flashed across the screen.

"Dammit! I was so close!" Joey complained to Tristan, leaning against the machine and scowling.

"Next time, brotha, next time." Tristan grinned.

"Tristan, you aren't black." Joey reminded him jokingly. Tristan was about to reply when his phone went off- a random melody that Joey didn't recognize played- though it was almost drowned out by the sounds of the arcade.

"Hello?... Yeah, he's here… Sure, we're at the arcade… Bring Tea too…. See ya in a few." Tristan said and hung up. "That was Yugi. You weren't picking up your phone. Him and Tea are coming up to chill too." He said, shoving his phone in his pocket.

_Oh yeah! I told Yugi I'd call him… Oh well, it worked out._ Joey grinned.

It wasn't 20 minutes later that Yugi and Tea walked into the arcade- dressed appropriately in their 'weekend' clothes.

"Hey guys… Time for some fun?" Tea asked sweetly, smiling at her friends.

"It's just like old times, the four of us." Yugi said in a reminiscent voice.

"5 if you count Yami." Joey said with a nod to himself, Yugi smiled and agreed.

"Well guys… Let's go kick some kiddie butt!" Tea said excitedly, and the group went to enjoy their Saturday.

* * *

Joey sneaked into the house. His dad's car was gone but that didn't always mean he wasn't home. Joey closed the front door quietly and slowly, trying to deafen the 'click' as much as possible. He cringed which it made a loud 'CL-ICK' and then he took off his shoes. The coast looked clear, so he sprinted upstairs taking three steps at a time. Upon reaching the top of the stairs- he figured that there must not be anyone home so he took a deep breath and relaxed, wiping the sweat from his forehead. He walked into his room and sat on his bed- picking up a book he needed to read for his literature class. _Not that I like doing homework, but I can't bullshit that I know whats going on if I can't listen in class…_ Joey ended up reading for 10 minutes before putting his book down and sighing.

_They could actually pick something worth reading…_

"Joey?" Came a soft voice from behind his door.

"Come in." Joey said with a yawn, he knew it was his sister from the sweet voice. Serenity opened the door and walked in the room. Joey looked at his sister for a moment, noticing her eyes were red and puffy, and her cheeks were just a bit swollen. The look in her eyes was the big give-away though. Somewhere between broken hearted and hopeful.

"What's wrong, Serenity?" Joey asked, hearing his voice shake a little. He got up and walked to his sister who paused in the doorway. He wrapped her in a hug and she grabbed onto his shirt and buried her face in it.

"I broke up with Seto." Serenity said, looking up at Joey. Her amber eyes were sad, and she had clearly been crying over the matter.

"T-today?" Joey asked, looking back at his baby sister. He was more worried than he'd ever been- and for once he was not at all happy about Seto being single.

"Yeah…" Serenity said and sniffed.

"Wanna talk about it?" Joey asked, walking over to his bed and sitting cross-legged.

"Not really." Serenity said and sat down. "But I will if you want me too…" She finished. Joey didn't know if he wanted her to- if it would hurt her, then obviously not.

"Whatever you want sis, you don't need to talk about it if it will make it worse." Joey replied, giving the power to Serenity willingly.

"Well, I will tell you this. Seto never really liked me," She began, Joey felt an instant anger pooling in his heart- _That bastard used her_? "but I never really liked him either. We never really clicked, you know? There was never that connection… It was right on paper, that's all, and Seto is all about paper." Serenity laughed and leaned on her brother's shoulder. "I feel better now though." She said.

"I'm glad you're ok with it. How did he take it?" Joey asked, he almost bit his tongue asking such a rude thing.

"Well, he took it like he takes everything. Like a cancelled business deal." Serenity said sarcastically, looking up at Joey and smiling to show him she was ok with it. "There's someone I think I would like better than him." Serenity grinned.

"Oh?" Joey asked, raising his eyebrows. He knew his sister, and it was rare for her to have one relationship right after the other.

"Yeah." She said almost slyly- obviously trying to play with him like a little kid would.

"Who's this?" Joey asked, his protective nature taking over.

"I'll just say he's another successful business man." Serenity said with a slightly mysterious inflexion in her voice.

_Duke Devlin… at least I know he really likes her…_ Joey thought to himself.

"I'm glad. You going to date him soon?" Joey asked, hopeful.

"We'll see. As much as I know me and Seto weren't right… It still hurts." She admitted, embracing Joey's shoulder and squeezing. "You're the best big brother."

"I know I am. To make me the official WORLDS best brother, why don't we go get some ice cream or something? Isn't that what chicks do when they break up with someone?" Joey asked with a big cheesy grin.

* * *

Sunday was the first time, in a long time, that Joey committed to staying home and spending time with his sister. She was really not that bad, she certainly wasn't a complainer, but she still desperately needed cheering up.

The two Wheeler siblings spent the day on the couch- playing video games and watching talk-shows together. They made fun of the duelists in the Russian matches and ate copious amounts of junk food. Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler agreed they could go to a movie under the condition that Joey come home immediately after and not have too much fun. They broke the latter.

By 4o'clock the two were sitting and staring at each other over a game of chess. Neither really cared for it, so were not very good, but they both insisted on acting like they knew more than the other.

"Your knight will be destroyed." Joey would say- not really knowing if that were possible.

"Ah, Sir Joseph, you are mistaken! My queen is going to take down any chance of you winning." Serenity would reply. The two went back and forth for fifteen minutes before deciding they didn't know how to play and were getting no where.

"You know, sis, we should do this again sometime." Joey said after picking up the chess pieces and putting them in the beat-up old cardboard box.

"Yeah… I miss doing stuff like this with you, Joey!" Serenity smiled and laughed. "You made me feel so much better…" She said and gave him a thumbs up.

"Awesome. That's my duty." Joey said, shoving the playing board in the box as well and getting up to put it away. He noticed his leg start to vibrate as soon as the box was neatly jammed into the games box. He looked at the number- didn't recognize it- and decided to leave the room to answer just in case it was some prank of Tristan's.

"I'll be back sis, I'm getting a call." Joey mumbled, leaving the room.

"Take your time." Serenity said, turning the TV back on.

"Hello?" Joey answered once he was on the staircase and out of earshot from his sister.

'Is this Joey?' The mystery voice asked, Joey thought it sounded very, very, creepily familiar…

"Kaiba? What do you want?" Joey hissed. He'd spent a day cheering his sister up because of this dude. This completely sexy dude who was now, temptingly, as single as Joey.

"Meet me at Domino Park at 7." Kaiba's voice said after a short pause.

"What? Why?" Joey asked, he heard Kaiba take a deep breath.

"Just show up and don't ask any questions." Kaiba finished and hung up. Joey pulled the phone away from his face and glared at it like it'd been the jerk instead of Kaiba.

* * *

_I'm so retarded. I'm getting dressed all nice to talk to the guy who dumped my sister. God. He probably just wants to beg me to talk to her so she'll take him back…_ Joey sighed as he pulled on his favorite black jeans. He liked these particular jeans because they were loose enough to be comfortable but still somehow cling to his hips for dear life. He pulled a plain, stark white T-shirt over his head and decided to forgo a jacket- it'd been a nice enough day.

He ran down the stairs, then quickly sat on the first step and pulled on his shoes- Serenity walked into the room, probably headed upstairs- and looked at him funny.

"You going somewhere?" She asked and Joey gulped.

"Y-yeah. I'm gonna meet a friend." He said, not making eye contact with his sister.

"Cool. Be safe." She said and walked next to Joey up the stairs.

_That was close. It's not like I wanted to lie to her though…_ Joey bit his lip- he then stood up and left the house- closing the door behind him and walking briskly in the direction of the park. Thankfully the park wasn't too far away- a maximum of 20 minute walk. Joey always thought it was a little over a mile- he was glad he didn't mind walking.

However, at this point, he was really wishing he'd brought a jacket. It wasn't cold out but it was breezy- enough to cause goose bumps all up and down his arms. Joey shivered and walked faster- he wasn't too far.

Domino was a nice city. He didn't really live in on all the action- but in a strange-suburbs like sanctuary in the edge of the city. The Kaiba Estate was farther away from Kaiba Corp than Joey's house but it a different direction- Joey always wondered why Kaiba bothered driving for 45 minutes in traffic every morning besides the fact that he was probably a masochist.

Joey approached the park, old trees were placed neatly in random areas. A play area for small children was empty but for a few mothers and their kids who were quietly enjoying the setting sun. Joey checked his phone for the time- he was early by about 5 minutes. The park had a walking track around it- with benches placed neatly every 20 or so feet around it. Joey found the closest one- and sat down. He stretched out his long legs and let them rest on the asphalt, he let his head fall back and he closed his eyes. It'd been a great day with his sister- but he still had 2 more days of suspension, better known as "yard work".

"I called the principle. You're no longer suspended." Joey opened his eyes. Someone must be talking to him… He sat up and looked straight ahead- to the likes of Kaiba. He stood there- in his casual business wear-looking at Joey with little to no expression on his face.

"Thanks." Joey said, raising his eyebrows. The breeze picked up- unfortunately for Joey the trees didn't block the chill that returned. Joey looked to where the wind came from- as if he could ask whoever was there to make it stop for a minute.

"Here." Joey heard Kaiba say. As he turned his head to look at the brunette- a black coat landed on his face. He pulled it off and gave Seto the best glare he could muster- which was really quite pathetic.

"I don't need your jacket. I'm not a fucking chick." Joey growled- though it came out roughly and didn't sound intimidating in the least.

"Put it on." Kaiba rolled his eyes. He finally walked over and sat next to Joey- moving gracefully and sitting with perfect posture. Joey reluctantly pulled on the jacket, noting mentally that it was still warm from Seto, and found himself almost purring.

"Why are we here?" Joey asked suddenly, "I mean, why did you wanna meet here?" Joey finished, suddenly very self conscious and nervous that this might have been a set up.

"Serenity dumped me." Kaiba said flatly- he obviously wasn't as upset as Joey's sister.

"Uh-huh." Joey agreed- glancing shyly at Kaiba who was staring off into the park.

"Which…" Kaiba started- he sucked in a breath and paused for a long moment.

"Which…?" Joey asked- looking at the taller male curiously.

"Which means," Kaiba looked unsure- it was almost charming on the otherwise stoic boy, "If I kiss you, you won't have any excuses to make me stop." He finished. Joey felt his heart pound suddenly- blood went to his cheeks instantly and he held his breath. Kaiba finally looked at Joey- his expression confident but his eyes slightly wider than usual- he looked as nervous as Joey.

"True." Joey nodded, he felt his stomach churn uncomfortably. His heart was beating so hard he could feel the pulses in his neck- he could hear them. He chewed on his lip and looked at his feet. _Well, now he's got me cowering like a puppy. I bet he's happy._ Joey thought bitterly. He felt a soft finger gently brush across his lip where he'd been biting it.

"You shouldn't do that." Kaiba said in his husky voice- breathing his words smoothly now. Joey glanced at him- noticing now he didn't look nervous at all… But more like a hungry cat.

Joey gasped, completely unintentionally, when Seto leaning in and captured his lips. It was their second kiss- Joey couldn't believe it were possible to match the first, let alone be better… But this kiss was. It was fantastic. Kaiba was soft for a few moments, he moved closer to Joey so the angle was less awkward. When Joey didn't respond- Seto, not really knowing what was going on, began to pull back.

Joey made a noise- something that was supposed to indicate his protest to Seto's moving away. He wrapped his arms around the brunette's neck and pulled him closer- urgently crushing his lips onto the brunettes, his nerves gone.

Kaiba was hesitant when Joey took over the kiss- it deepened quickly and both boys were getting hot and bothered- quickly. Joey broke the kiss- his body reacting completely to the onslaught of new emotions and the hot feet of Seto's hands on his thigh.

Joey laughed a little, an awkward silence followed.

"Well, that was… nice?" Joey said with an embarrassed grin- he was blushing profusely and was very, well, horny. Kaiba didn't say a word- he stood up and grabbed Joey's arm and began to walk, as his usual brisk pace, in the opposite direction of Joey's house.

"K-kaiba… Where are we going?" Joey asked innocently- before noticing Kaiba's black Mercedes parked by the curb- it's tinted windows looking ominous as ever.

Kaiba opened the car and sat down in the driver's seat- Joey reluctantly sat down in the passenger side- hoping that's what Seto had wanted.

"Hey… Kaiba…" Joey said quietly as they pulled out onto the road.

"Use my first name." Seto said calmly. _He really isn't a talker._

"Ok_,__**Seto**_, where are we going now?" He asked- they were speeding and Joey was holding onto the car door with white knuckles as the trees and buildings of Domino city went by at a blur. The car quietly hummed, adding to the silence.

"My place, I was thinking…" Seto said- steering with one hand and shifting with the other- the car lurched a little and Joey felt his heart race.

The Kaiba Estate came up quickly- Kaiba drifted the corner just a little turning into his driveway. The gate opened automatically- and Seto sped to the door. The car stopped and Joey took the first deep breath since the drive started. He got out on shaky legs- thankfully he was less horny now and had a better time walking. Kaiba walked confidently to the door- tossing his keys carelessly at his valet who bowed once he caught them. Kaiba entered the house- looking at Joey and telling him to follow.

Kaiba shut the front door quickly and before Joey could say a word he was pressed onto the big wooden door. Kaiba had his hands on Joey's hips- he seemed to like them there- and was kissing Joey's neck softly. Joey mewled when Kaiba moved a hand under his shirt and ran his fingers up Joey's side- tickling him enough to drive Joey wild.

Joey gasped and arched into the brunette- Kaiba seemed to be pretty experienced with this…

"Y-you've done this… before?" Joey said- his voice pitchy and trembling.

"Am I that good?" Seto breathed, smiling into the crook of Joey's neck- he then continued to plant soft kisses there.

"Basically." Joey responded. "Shouldn't we go somewhere more… p-private?" Joey said with a lot of effort. He could feel his erection straining against his jeans- the ache becoming unbearably strong.

"Good point." Kaiba said, he wrapped his arms around the blonde and took a deep breath- he then released him and held his hand as he power walked up the left staircase and down the hall. The 5th door- on the right- was the one Seto pushed open. His room was surprisingly colorful, his walls were an icy blue and the bed matched with different shades of blue that complimented the walls. The room itself was exceptionally large- 3 evenly spaced windows to the front of the house showed its massive size.

"This room is huge!" Joey exclaimed- walking into it and turning around to see all sides. There wasn't much furniture- a lot of open space. Kaiba's bed was a king size, though that wasn't a surprise, and it took up only a small portion of the space.

"I like everything huge…" Kaiba said and grabbed Joey from behind, Joey laughed at the joke. He felt the hardness of his lover digging into his backside- and he almost moaned from the sensation. He turned around and nuzzled into Seto's hug- this couldn't get any better. He felt nothing but euphoria in the moment Seto hugged him back and sighed.

Kaiba pulled away and took 4 long strides to his bed, he sat down and pulled off his shirt- Joey followed after him. The blonde stood in front of Seto- he put his hands on Kaiba's shoulders and pushed him back. Kaiba let him- he shivered when he touched the cool sheets with his bare back.

Joey crawled on top of his lover- he straddled Kaiba's crotch- sitting as lightly as he could. Joey kissed Seto's shoulders- pecking over as much skin as he could. He kissed the brunettes nipple- satisfied with a small groan out of Seto. Joey paused and sat up, looking down at Kaiba.

"What?" Kaiba asked- opening his eyes and glaring- the closest he came to pouting.

"Don't tell Serenity we did this, ok?" Joey asked and gave Kaiba a serious look.

"I don't think she'd care…" Kaiba started, Joey growled, and then a realization came over him.

"Did you sleep with my sister?" Joey asked, feeling panicky and wide-eyed._Is THAT why he's so good at this?_

_

* * *

_

A/N: Okay, dear fans, I cannot give you a lemon here, as it is against the rules (Big sadness). And where the lemon goes on AFF, I vow to write you a little lime-y makeout scene to suffice. I thank all of you who have stuck with me with this story, and it WILL be finished. Review, critter bugs :) 3


	10. The Affectionate HangUp

Chapter 10- The Affectionate Hang-Up

A/N: My chapter titles are often ridiculous.

* * *

"Did you sleep with my sister?" Joey asked, feeling panicky and wide-eyes. _Is THAT why he's so good at this?_

Seto chuckled as Joey recoiled to get up off the bed and leave, "No." Joey smiled at his new boyfriend, as cutely as he could. "She's not nearly the whore that you are." Seto continued, his eyes dark and playful.

"Seto—" Joey began before Seto sat up and wrapped his arms around the shorter mans neck, kissing him roughly and pulling him down on top of himself.

"I'm just being an ass…" Seto whispered into Joey's ear, nuzzling it softly.

"Well good. Because I refuse to sleep with you until you at least buy me dinner or something." Joey said with mock conviction, staring into the lovely blue eyes below him and melting like chocolate in a hot car.

"It's good to know I can buy your ass." Seto remarked, "Would a Mercedes get me a love slave for a week?" The CEO asked dryly.

"Harhar, hot shot. I never would have guessed you were such a cuddler." Joey noted as the older teen was delicately caressing his sides and kissing his ear.

"I never would have guessed you were easy but…" Seto said and before his blonde companion could reply he bit a spot on Joey's neck- hard. Joey gasped and arched his back down against Seto's body.

"Watch it. Don't leave a mark…" Joey whined.

"Too late. You're mine anyways though, mutt." Seto snorted and flipped them both over- taking control as he was on top again.

"Mmmm… If it was anyone else, I wouldn't let them do that." Joey said seriously, looking up semi-seriously at Kaiba.

"You can't resist me?" Seto replied, Joey rolled his eyes.

"No wonder your room is so big. It has to fit your ego." Joey hissed playfully, kissing the boy above him once.

"My ego isn't the only unnaturally large part of my body." Seto said with an amused tone.

"Hmmm… Your ears? They _are_ kinda funny looking…" Joey remarked, sitting up slightly to lick the inside rim of Kaibas left ear sweetly. The brunette let out a throaty noise, _Oh. That's a spot to remember..._

Joey kissed Kaiba's mouth greedily, relaxing his jaw and flicking his tongue softly against the other's lips. The older boy responded by opening his mouth, letting Joey explore it thoroughly.

The boys continued for a bit, before Joey pulled away, and looked Seto in the eye.

"That's all you get for tonight. I'm tired." Joey said with a yawn. He glanced at the clock next to Kaiba's bed, noting it was only 9:30… Too early to sleep.

"Don't leave yet." The brunette said quietly. Joey looked at him sharply, to find the powerful CEO looking down at his sheets uncomfortably, his strong jaw locked in place with an insecure expression.

"Is… Is the great Seto Kaiba asking the even greater Joey Wheeler to stay in his bed?" Joey teased, a huge grin spreading on his face.

"Shut up, mutt. Just take a nap. I'll wake you up in an hour and take you home." Seto said, hooking and arm around Joey neck and forcing the blonde to lay down with him. Joey sighed and moved closer to his new boyfriend, laying his head on the larger chest and closing his eyes, almost instantly asleep.

* * *

"Kaiba, _dammit_, you said you'd wake me up in an hour." Joey complained roughly. The brunette did end up waking Joey up, but it was closer to 2 AM than 10:30. The teens were now in Kaiba's slick car, heading back towards Joey's smaller house at an obscene speed.

"You sleep like the dead." Seto shot back, never taking his eyes off the vaguely lit roads.

"You were supposed to wake me up at 10:30. It's 1:45 in the morning. If my parents wake up or realize I was gone… I'm dead." Joey said, putting his face in his hands.

"You'll be fine. They like me." Seto boasted. Joey was not even the littlest bit convinced that would work.

"They like you with Serenity. They don't even know I like… guys…." Joey said, looking out the window wistfully.

"I'm not a guy, pup, I'm Seto _Kaiba_." The CEO corrected, quite seriously.

"Again with the ego!" Joey shrieked.

"Shut up. If it bothered you that much, you wouldn't have offered to sell your ass for dinner." Seto chuckled to himself. Joey sighed exaggeratedly, but gave the older a small smile. "We're here." Seto announced, stopping the car.

"Thanks for the ride and stuff." Joey said, unhooking his seat belt. "Mostly the 'and stuff'." Joey grinned, looking up at his new lover.

"Not a problem, mutt. However, as payment for this ride _and stuff_, I think I need a kiss." The older CEO said, expressionless as ever. Joey smiled, leaning over and pecking Seto on the cheek. "You're so scandalous, Joey." Seto chuckled again, grabbing Joey's hand and pulling him onto his lap for a real kiss.

Joey melted again, like the first time, which Seto's arms hooked around him tightly and his mouth expertly explored his own. When they broke apart Joey was thanking whatever deity that existed that the windows were darkly tinted, his cheeks were burning with renewed excitement.

"Maybe dinner first is asking too much…" Joey said flirtatiously, kissing Kaiba's jaw line.

"That would certainly be my assessment." Kaiba agreed, nodding. "Now get out of here before your parents wonder why my car is outside your house." Kaiba said, letting his arms slacken from around his lovers' body.

"Yeah. Bye, Seto." Joey said sadly, his heart felt like it was contorting in his chest, he really didn't want to leave.

"Bye, mutt." Seto smirked as Joey closed the car door as quietly as he could.

Seto, being the same asshole as he ever was, turned on his car and revved the engine loudly. Joey grit his teeth, trying desperately not to yell at his boyfriend in the middle of the night in the middle of the street. Instead, he stalked up to his house, gently put his key in the keyhole, and opened the door slowly and softly.

He cringed as he closed the door, it made a loud 'click' upon closing and he froze momentarily. The blonde took a deep breath and headed to his room, creeping up the stairs quietly. When no one caught him, he undressed in his room, and crawled into his bed. He was elated that no one found him, but even more so that he'd spent the night with _Seto freaking Kaiba_.

* * *

"Joey, time to wake up…" A soft, feminine voice, said to Joey in his slumber.

"Why? It's Sunday…" Joey whined, pulling his blanket tightly around his neck.

"It's 10o'clock, brother. Time to wake up. I've got a few questions for you." He said, laying a hand on Joey's shoulder and shaking a little bit.

"Fine…" Joey sighed, opening his eyes and yawning loudly. He slowly sat up and crossed his legs, stretching his arms into the air and yawning again. "Shoot." He said as he finished his morning ritual.

"First of all… Joey, what _is _that?" Serenity sounded quite alarmed as she pointed to Joey's neck accusingly. Joey glanced at his sister and he brought his hand to the spot. Immediately upon touching it, the flesh lighted up under his fingers with pain. _Fucking Kaiba. Leaving marks, argh._

"It's a…. It's just a… bruise." Joey finished, looking at his sister sleepily, hoping she'd buy it.

"Joey, I _know_ it's a hickey… Who, uh, gave it to you?" Serenity asked sweetly, cocking her head to the side cutely.

"The person I was with." Joey answered vaguely, eyeing his sister suspiciously.

"Joey! Who were you with?" Serenity prodded. Joey bit his lip and looked at his sister desperately. "That look isn't going to work, big brother!" Serenity chuckled.

"Sis, I love you, you know that. You also know that I would never do anything if I thought it would hurt you." Joey started, feeling extremely guilty and backed into a corner.

"You were with Seto, huh?" She asked, not looking nearly as upset or disturbed as he initially thought she'd be.

"Yes." Joey nodded.

"And he gave you the hickey?" She clarified.

"Uh-huh." Joey nodded again.

There was a pause in the conversation; the two siblings stared at each other intently for a minute. Joey, on the verge of a panic-attack, was extremely relieved when Serenity smiled largely and threw arm around his neck.

"I'm so happy for you, Joey." She said, tackling the older sibling onto his bed.

"H-happy?" Joey asked in a strained voice, completely confused.

"Joey, as hard as you tried, it was so obvious you liked him. You're such a sweet brother that you didn't want me to know." She said, releasing her brother from the hug. "Mom and dad aren't home, they decided to go to church for once, and I covered for you. So no worrying, okay?" Serenity asked playfully, smiling grandly at her brother. "I also convinced them to let you come and go shopping with me and see a movie." She finished.

Joey felt tears prickle at his eyes as they filled with water.

"Sis you're—" Joey began. Serenity interrupted him.

"I already know. It's because I love you and without you, I wouldn't be able to see or live the life I have now. I'd do anything for you, Joey." Serenity finished, both siblings blubbering and hugging each other loosely.

* * *

Riiiing, Riiiiing, Riiiiing…. "Kaiba." Kaiba answered the phone sharply.

"H-hey Seto, its Joey." Joey said into the phone, feeling weird about talking to Seto so suddenly about the night before.

"Ahh, my favorite mutt." Seto said, Joey could hear the smirk in his voice and the creak of his chair as he obviously leaned back in it to chat with his boyfriend.

"Whatever you rich bastard. Just because I like you does not mean I won't still kick your ass." Joey threatened, though there was no ferocity behind his voice. He was smiling into the phone affectionately.

"Oh, you'd kick _my _ass, dog? Somehow, I think you're being a bit unrealistic." Seto threatened back sarcastically. "Is there a legitimate reason you disturbed my perfectly good work day?" He asked bluntly.

"It's Sunday. You shouldn't be working. You should be spending the day with your boyfriend." Joey said, his grin creeping wider.

"My boyfriend?" Seto asked in an accusing voice.

"You know, the amazing blonde duelist you made out with last night?" Joey added, understanding the game they were playing.

"…Yugi?" Seto asked, Joey could hear the smirk.

"SETO!" Joey shrieked. "Enough! Any ways, Serenity is taking me shopping and to a movie with the gang today, she convinced my parents. Would you come along?" Joey asked quietly, realizing how unappealing that must sound to the CEO.

"Does this puppy miss his master?" Seto teased.

"Shut up, are you coming or not?" Joey hissed, resenting the dog jokes immensely.

"…what does this 'gang' entail?" Kaiba asked skeptically.

"The usual. Yugi, Tea, Tristan, Serenity… Maybe Duke. Maybe Seto Kaiba…" Joey listed off names, slyly trying to convince the older duelist to come along. Joey heard a long, overly dramatic sigh, and knew he'd won.

"Alright. But I promised Mokuba I'd take him to the arcade, so I'll have to bring him along." Seto finished.

"That's awesome! Everyone likes Mokuba anyways." Joey nodded to himself, then began grinning like an idiot that his boyfriend was coming along for the day.

"However," Seto started, Joey gulped. There was always a catch, wasn't there? "You must tell me right now that you miss me." Seto completed his thought.

"Kaiba—" Joey began.

"And you're to call me Seto." Seto added, feeling smug. Joey couldn't help but feel a little honored in Kaiba's world, one of the few he invited to call him by his first name.

"Seto, I miss you." Joey said. He didn't really care anymore, So long as he was with Seto he was happy.

Then a thought crossed his mind.

"Oh, and you, moneybags, left a huge fucking hickey on my neck! You know how obvious it is? Serenity tried _all morning_ to cover it up with that goopy crap she puts on her face and it's still darker than the rest of my damn neck!" Joey ranted.

Seto chuckled.

_Click!_

Joey blinked, he's just been hung up on. Oh well. He was just excited to spend time with the older duelist.

* * *

A/N: Look! Another chapter! Okay, so I may have lied before, because there will be 1 more chapter and that's IT! I'm ready to be done with this story. Love it as I might, it's been hanging around for all too long. So questions that will be answered next chapter; what will Tristan think/do? Who is Serenity going to start dating now? What's the meaning of life?

Eheheh… I wrote this whole chapter at one sitting. *Pats self on back*. I'm a little tired now.

Tadaaa~! Reviews FTW, critters!


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